UC-NRLF 


B    M    17D    bflS 


EARTH 

SCIENCE*; 
UBRAR- 


[EXECUTIVE  DOCUMENT,  No.  13.] 


REPORT 


OF  PROFESSOR  EMMQNS, 


ON    HIS 


(T  EG  LOGICAL    SURVEY 


0  F 


NORTH  CAROLINA. 
M 


RALEIGH: 

SEATON  GALES,  PRINTER  TO  THE  LEGISLATURE. 
1852- 


tfi 


EARTH 

SCIENC 

LIBRARY 


[Message  and  Report  communicated  to  the  House  of  Com- 
mons. Transmitted  to  the  Senate  with  a  proposition  to  print 
3000  copies.  Ordered  accordingly . 


To  the  Honorable  the  General  Assembly 

of  the  State  of  North  Carolina  : 

1  herewith  transmit  the  Report  of  Prof.  E.  EMMONS, 
who  was  appointed,  under  the  Act  of  the  last  Session,  to 
make  a  Geological,  Mineralogical,  and  Agricultural  Survey 
of  the  State. 

DAVID  br.  REID. 
KXECUTITE  DEPARTMENT,  ~> 

Raleigh,  November  22d;  1852.  j 


REPORT. 


To  His  Excellency,  DAVID  S.  REID, 

Governor  of  North  Carolina  : 

SIR  :— 

§  1.  Agreeably  to  the  requirement  of  the  Act  of  the 
Legislature,  passed  the  24th  January,  1851,  authorising  a 
Geological  Survey  of  the  State,  I  herewith  present  the  First 
Annual  Report. 

In  the  discharge  of  this  duty,  I  have  deemed  it  advisable, 
at  this  time,  and  at  this  stage  of  the  work,  to  confine  my  com- 
munication to  two  principal  subjects  : — the  Soils  and  Agri- 
culture of  the  Lower  Counties  ;  and  the  Coal  Fields  of  Rock- 
iugham.  Stokes,  Chatham,  and  Moore  Counties  : — the  two 
former  occupying  the  Northern,  and  the  latter  the  Central, 
portions  of  the  State.  I  deem  it,  however,  relevant  to  the 
subjects  before  me,  to  introduce  the  statement  of  such 
principles  of  Agriculture  and  Geology  as  may  be  required  for 
the  better  understanding  of  these  departments  ;  or  which  are 
suggested  by,  or  flow  immediately  from,  facts  which  I  have 
observed. 

I  hope  this  course  will  be  approved  of,  as  the  subjects  are 
beginning  to  excite  public  attention,  and  are  probably  among 
the  most  important  matters  to  which  the  public  attention  has 
been  turned  for  many  years. 


M134G 


many  points  which  have  been  established,  of 
y^ars;  thejtfe:arV /our  of  very  great  importance,  namely  : 
That  soils  must  contain  a  sufficiency  of  certain  inorganic 
dements  ;  that  these  elements  are  necessary  to  the  life  of  the 
plant  •   that  no  seed  can  be  perfected  without  them ;   and-, 
finally ',  that  they  are  essential  to  the  life  of  the  animal  sub- 
sisting on  vegetable  food.     It  follows,  from  these  established 
points,  that  some,  at  least,  of  the  important  products  of  life 
are  derived  from  the  soil  ;  it  being  possible  to  trace  them  back 
from  the  animal,  through  the  plant,  to  the  soil.     From  this,  it 
also  follows,  that  the  true  method  of  determining  the  important 
elements  of  a  soil,  is,  to  analyse  the  products  of  life  as  found 
in  the  plant  and  animal.     That  \Uiich  is  constantly  found  in 
those  products,  and  which  can  be  traced   to  no  other  source 
than  the  soil,  must,  of  necessity,  be  regarded  as  the  essential 
elements  of  the  soil.     We  can  arrive  at  no  other  conclusion  . 
and  furthermore,  by  no  other  method  can  we  reach  a  correct 
conclusion.      This  method  has  been  followed  ;   and  it  has 
resulted  in  (he  discovery  that  the  following  substances  are  the 
essential  ones  which  have  been  alluded  to,  namely  : — Phos- 
phoric acid,  Sulphur,  Potash,  Soda,  Lime,  Magnesia,  Oxyde 
of  Iron,  Silica,  Nitrogen,  Oxygen,  Hydrogen,  Carbon,  Water, 
Ammonia,  Chlorine,  and  small  quantities  of  Fluorine. 

I  might  have  left  out  of  this  list  oxygen,  hydrogen,  nitro- 
gen, carbon,  and  ammonia,  inasmuch  as  there  are,  it  is  sup- 
posed, other  sources  of  supply  than  that  of  the  soil.  It  is  no!, 
however,  fully  established  that,  in  the  arrangements  of  nature, 
there  is  a  full  provision  for  this  supply,  when  soils  are  subject- 
ed to  high  culture,  and  are  required  to  produce  more  than  five 
times  the  amount  which  they  produce  spontaneously.  It  is 
undoubtedly  true,  that  the  vegetable  kingdom  can  sustain 
itself  by  the  instrumentality  of  the  common  sources  of  supply  ; 
yet,  when  a  species  of  this  kingdom,  as  Corn,  for  example, 
is  required  to  yield  its  sixty  bushels  to  the  acre,  we  can  see  no 
provision  for  this  result  in  its  wild  and  uncultivated  state. 

Hence,  under  culture,  where  the  soil  is  thus  heavily  (axed  to 
meet  the  demands  of  civilized  life,  there  it  fails,  in  process  of 


time,  to  supply  them,  and  means  to  supply  them  are  called 
for,  and  even  required,  in  order  to  sustain  the  soil  undei  its 
increased  products.  Those  elements,  then,  which  constitute 
parts  of  the  atmosphere,  as  carbonic  acid  and  ammonia,  which 
are  furnished  in  sufficient  quantities  to  plants,  growing  spon- 
taneously, are  not  supplied,  as  I  have  already  hinted,  when 
soils  are  put  under  heavy  culture  5  or,  they  may  not  be  sup- 
plied in  sufficient  quantities  to  meet  the  demands  of  a  succes- 
sion of  crops. 

§  3.  As  I  shall  have  frequent  occasion  to  refer  to  those 
elements  of  soil,  generally  known  as  inorganic  elements, 
I  propose,  in  this  place,  to  speak  of  them  ;  and  to  state  some 
of  their  properties,  uses,  and  the  sources  whence  they  are  de- 
rived. 

1.  PHOSPHORIC  ACID. — In  its  separate  state,  insulated 
from  other  bodies,  it  is  an  exceeding  sour  substance.  It  is 
solid,  and  resembles  flakes  of  snow,  when  freshly  prepared  ; 
but,  in  consequence  of  its  avidity  for  water,  it  soon  becomes, 
in  the  atmosphere,  a  limpid  fluid.  Like  other  sour  or  acid 
bodies,  it  readily  combines  with  potash,  soda,  lime,  and  many 
other  bodies  ;  and  forms,  with  them,  new  compounds,  which 
are  called  phosphates.  Hence  we  have  phosphate  of  lime, — 
which  exists  both  as  a  natural  substance  in  rocks,  and  in  the 
animal  kingdom  in  bones  ;  and  it  is  mainly  in  this  form  or 
combination  that  it  is  known  in  the  animal  and  vegetable 
kingdom.  Animal  bodies  all  contain  more  or  less  of  phos- 
phate of  lime,  and  probably  it  is  among  the  most  important. 
The  bones,  however,  contain  more  of  it  than  other  parts  ;  and, 
in  its  absence,  and  when  it  is  diminished  in  quantity,  they  are 
soft  and  flexible,  and  unfitted  to  sustain  the  weight  of  the  body. 

The  source  of  phosphate  of  lime  is  the  mineral  kingdom. 
Probably  all  the  rocks  contain  it,  sometimes  in  large  masses  ; 
but,  usually,  it  seems  to  be  diffused  through  them  in  fine 
particles.  When  they  decompose  and  disintegrate,  it  is,  of 
course,  mixed  with  (he  soil.  It  is  more  abundant  in  granite, 
greenstone,  trap  dykes,  and  volcanic  products,  than  in  othe^ 
rocks.  This  fact  seems  to  show  thai  igneous  rocks,  the  pyro- 


chrystalline,  are  the  true  sources  of  this  important  substance. 
In  New  York,  I  discovered,  in  1837,  a  vein  of  it  subordinate 
to  a  trap  dyke,  and  in  connexion  also  with  the  primary  or  the 
pyrochrystalline  limestone — all  of  which  may  be  classed  toge- 
ther as  igneous  products.  This  vein,  in  one  place,  was  seven 
feet  wide  ;  and  hence  furnished  a  large  amount  of  lime  for 
agricultural  purposes.  In  the  same  section,  I  discovered  the 
same  substance  associated  with  the  magnetic  oxyde  of  iron,  in 
small  clustered  crystals,  forming,  in  many  places,  more  than 
one-half  of  the  mass. 

In  the  trap  dyke,  this  mineral  phosphate  is  green,  less  hard 
than  feldspar ;  and,  in  the  iron  bed,  in  reddish,  six-sided  prisms. 
1  am  careful  to  mention  these  facts  •  for  this  important  sub- 
stance may  exist  in  the  pyrocrystalline  rocks  of  North  Oarolina  ; 
and,  if  in  quantity,  would  be  of  great  value  to  the  agricultural 
interests  of  the  State.  It  should  be  sought  for  in  rocks  of 
igneous  origin  ;  and  especially  where  the  magnetic  ores  of 
iron  exist.  In  this  state  it  occurs  in  the  marl  beds,  at  the  bot- 
tom of  the  shell  marl  ;  though  it  is  also  diffused  through  the 
beds,  in  masses  of  small  size;  — ic  is  in  dark  rounded  and  some- 
times spiral  masses.  In  this  form,  it  is  known  under  the  name 
of  coprolite.  It  is  the  excrement  of  marine  animals,  and  coir 
tains  rather  more  than  50  per  cent,  of  phosphate  of  lime  ;  or 
about  the  same  proportion  as  it  exists  in  bone.  These  copro- 
lites  are  very  valuable,  and  1  have  indicated  the  place  where 
they  abound  the  most.  They  seem  to  have  been  collected  at 
the  bottom  of  the  shell  marl,  and  to  have  been  subjected  to 
•  attrition  by  the  waves  of  the  sea.  They  are  associated  with 
quartz  pebbles,  and  generally  are  black  or  brown,  and  almost 
as  hard  as  quaitz.  Coprolites  are  found  also  in  the  coal 
stratas  of  Rockingharn,  Stokes,  Chatham,  and  Moore.  They 
have  a  similar  origin  to  those  of  the  marl  beds  •  but  they 
do  not  exist  in  sufficient  abundance,  as  1  have  seen  in  either 
formation,  to  warrant  the  expense  of  extracting  them.  Still 
the  facts  are  important,  and  should  not  be  forgoaen.  The 
importance  of  this  substance  cannot  be  doubted,  when  it  is 
known  that  Indian  corn,  wheat,  rye,  oats,  barley,  all  the 


cereals,  potatoes,  and  all  the  tubers  and  tap-rooted  plants  con- 
tain it;  and  especially  the  cereals.  A  soil  destitute  of  it  is 
totally  barren. 

2.  SULPHUR. — It  is  a  substance  too  well  known  to  require 
a  description.    It  is  not  so  well  known,  however,  that  it  is  an 
important  element  in  the  vegetable  and  animal  kingdoms.     It 
is  found  in  the  animal  tissues.     Peas  and  clover  belong  to  a 
family  of  plants  in  which  it  is  always  found.     It  is  an  element 
of  oil  of  vitriol,  and  hence  one  of  the  elements  of  gypsum.    A 
class  of  minerals  called  sulphurets  also  contain  it. 

3.  POTASH. — Equally  well  known  is  potash.     It  is  a  con- 
stituent of  granite,  existing  in  the  feldspar  of  the  rock  in  the 
proportion  of  16  per  cent.    Owing  to  its  presence,  this  mineral 
is  subject  to  decomposition ,  and  then  forms  kaolin;  a  substance 
employed   in   porcelain.     Other  minerals  contain  it.     The 
green  sand,  one  of  the  varieties  of  marl  in  the  Eastern  Coun- 
ties, owes  its  fertilizing  properties  to  potash.     It  plays  an  im- 
portant part,  both  in  the  organic  and  inorganic  world.     It  is 
instrumental  in  giving  solubility  to  silex  ;  and  hence  prepares 
this  substance  to  be  taken  up  into  the  tissues  of  plants.  In  com- 
bination with  potash,  silex  is  taken  up,  and  made  a  part  of 
the  straw  of  wheat,  rye,  and  oats,  and  imparts  that  strength 
which  is  necessary  to  enable  the  plane  to  stand  up.     When 
deficient  in  silex,  wheat,  rye,  and  other  grains  fall,  and  are 
injured  or  destroyed. 

Potash  is  an  expensive  fertilizer,  ranking,  in  this  respect, 
with  phosphate  of  lime.  To  this,  more  than  any  other  ele- 
ment, ashes  owe  their  value  as  fertilizers.  Argilaceous  soils 
contain  it,  in  combination  with  silex  ;  but  the  combination  is 
insoluble,  and  requires  the  addition  01  lime  to  free  it  from  a 
portion  of  silica,  in  order  to  bring  it  into  a  soluble  condition. 

4.  SODA. — This  alkali  is  more  abundant  than  potash,  and 
beds  of  nitrate  of  soda  exist  in  climates  where  no  rain  falls. 
Its  office,  in  plants  and  animals,  is  not  very  dissimilar  to  that 
of  potash.     The   great  source   of  it  is  the  sea,  and  beds  of 
rock  salt. 


s 


5.  LIME. — Lime,  in  some  form  or  combination,  is  found  in 
all  parts  of  plants  and  animals.  The  bark  of  trees  abounds 
in  it,  where  it  serves  to  protect  the  wood  from  injury  ;  and  the 
testaceous  covering  of  shell-fish,  oysters,  and  clams,  together 
with  the  integuments  of  crabs,  and  the  substance  of  corals.  In 
bones,  it  is  in  combination  with  phosphoric  acid  ;  while,  in 
the  bark  of  plants,  it  is  probably  in  combination  with  organic 
acids  ;  and,  in  the  testaceous  covering,  it  is  combined  with  car- 
bonic acid.  It  is  more  generally  diffused  in  the  mineral 
world  than  either  of  the  alkalies,  or  alkaline  earths  ;  and  still 
it  is  one  of  those  substances  which  is  wanting  in  soils,  and 
that,  too,  when  they  exist  in  the  vicinity  of  limestone  rocks. 

Lime  also  exists  in  the  bones  of  man,  in  the  proportion  of 
about  twelve  per  cent.  From  its  .universal  diffusion  in  the 
vegetable  and  animal  kingdoms,  it  is  evident  it  is  one  of  the 
important  elements  of  the  soil.  Its  presence  in  the  soil, 
however,  is  not  so  common  as  might  be  expected  from  its 
great  abundance  m  the  mineral  kingdom.  We  have  no  cal- 
careous soils,  even  upon  our  limestone,  though  there  may  be 
patches  of  a  few  yards  in  extent  where  lime  is  the  principal 
substance.  Much  uncertainty  prevails  in  the  use  of  lime.  I 
shall,  however,  reserve  what  I  have  to  say,  under  this  head, 
until  I  have  occasion  to  speak  of  the  use  of  marls. 

6.  MAGNESIA. — It  is  often  maintained  that  magnesia  is 
hurtful  to  soils.  When  caustic,  it  does  not  become  mild  so 
soon  as  lime  ;  and  hence  is  liable  to  absorb  the  water  which  is 
requiied  ly  plants.  Yet  the  phosphate  of  magnesia  is  a  con. 
stant  element  of  the  wheat,  rye,  and  corn,  as  well  also  as  in 
all  vegetable  food,  [t  exists  in  soil;  is  important  to  fertility  : 
but  is  less  so  than  lime.  Its  source  is  in  the  magnesian  rocks, 
as  they  are  termed,  such  as  soapstone  and  steatite  talcose  slate. 
It  is  far  less  soluble  than  lime.  When  barrenness  appears 
in  connexion  with  serpentine,  it  is  not  because  magnesia  is 
injurious,  but  because  other  earths  are  wanting  or  absent. 
Magnesian  limestones  have  rarely,  if  ever,  injured  vegetation 
in  this  country,  though  prejudices  exist  abroad. 


7.  SILICA.— In  flint  and  rock  crystals,  we  have  examples 
of  this  earth.     It  is  harder  than  glass  ;  and,  in  the  common 
form  in  which  it  is  found,  is  insoluble.     It  appears,  in  this 
form,  to  he  one  of  the  most  indifferent  of  all  bodies.     Yet  it 
is  found  in  such  combinations  that  it  is  freely  taken  up  by  the 
roots  of  grasses,  and  plants  of  this  family.     It  constitutes  a 
very  large  proportion  of  the  earth's  crust.     In  soils,  it  varies  in 
quantity.     Its  proper  proportion  is  about  85  per  cent,  ;  but 
good  soils  often  contain  less,  and  two  01  three  per  cent.  more. 
The  office  which  silex  performs  is  to  preserve  a  due  amount 
of  the  coarser  matter  :  for,  when  a  soil  is  composed  of  impal- 
pable matter,  it  is  comparatively  barren  ;  and  silex,  from  its 
excessive  hardness,  resists  the  wear  and  action  of  the  elements. 
By  being  commingled  with  clay,  it  imparts  porosity  and  loose- 
ness ;  permits  the  roots  to  ^penetrate  deeply;  while,  at   the 
same  time,  air  and  moisture  permeate  through  the  mass  as  far 
us  roots  can  find  their  way.     The  use  of  silex  is,  therefore, 
partly  mechanical  and  partly  physiological ;  being  necessary 
m  soils  to  preserve  porosity,  and  particularly  necessary  to  the 
cereals  to  protect  the  straw  and  kernels,  and  give  elasticity  and 
strength  to  the  whole  plant.     So  abundant  is  this  substance, 
however,  that  it  is  never  necessary  to  add  it  to  the  soil,  except 
for  mechanical  use  ; — potash  and  lime  are  often  added  for  the 
purpose,  of  freeing  it  from  its  insoluble  combinations,  when 
the  grains  are  special  objects  of  culture. 

8.  OXIDE  OF  IRON. — Analyses  of  organic  bodies,  prove  the 
existence  of  iron  in  them  ;  and  in  those  animals  which  have 
red  blood,  it  is  satisfactorily  demonstrated  that  it  serves  to  main- 
tain the  heat  of  the  body.     In  addition  to  this,  its  salutaiy  ef- 
fects upon  the  human  system  prove,  also,  that  it  performs 

^ome  other  office  besides.  It  is,  then,  an  important  element, 
physiologically.  In  the  soil,  however,  it  is  supposed  to  be 
concerned  in  developing  or  forming  ammonia.  Iron,  by  it- 
self, is  rarely  used  as  a  fertilizer.  The  oxide,  however,  taken 
from  the  smith's  forge,  intermixed  witli  refuse  matter  collect- 
ing about  a  smith's  shop,  is  often  highly  beneficial  to  fruit 
trees  ;  and  pear  trees,  especially,  have  derived  essential  benefit 
by  the  application. 


10 


9.  AMMONIA. — It  is  known  by  everybody,  under  the  name 
of  hartshorn.  In  this  State,  however,  it  is  not  applied  to 
plants,  or  to  soils.  It  belongs  both  to  the  soil  and  atmosphere. 
Nitrogen,  an  element  of  the  atmosphere  and  ammonia,  is  an 
essential  constituent  of  the  cereals,  being  one  of  the  compo- 
nents of  gluten,  or  the  pasty  part  of  flour.  It  is  supposed 
that  the  salts  of  ammonia  are  the  media,  through  whkh  nitro- 
gen gains  access  to  the  grain  •  and  there  are  results  of  experi- 
ments which  go  to  prove  that,  if  it  is  wished  to  increase  the 
wheat  crop,  it  requires  the  addition  of  substances  which  will 
furnish  ammonia — that  the  fertilizers  1  have  noticed  in  the 
foregoing  paragraphs  are  not  sufficient,  or  are  inefficient,  in  the 
case  of  wheat,  unless  they  are  mingled  with  ammoniacal  com- 
pounds. Phosphate  of  lime  will  greatly  increase  the  turnip 
crop  j  yet,  if  applied  to  \vheat,  when  the  soil  is  unexhausted, 
with  a  view  to  increase  the  product,  it  fails,  unless  ammonia 
is  furnished  also.  Yet,  on  poor  and  exhausted  lands,  phos- 
phate of  lime  is  known  to  produce  surprising  effects.  In  fiesh 
soils,  plaster  and  charcoal  readily  absorb  ammonia. 

WATER. — This  element  is  the  great  solvent  of  the  different 
inorganic  bodies  upon  which  I  have  been  speaking.  Nothing 
can  act  and  become  beneficial  to  vegetation,  until  it  is  dissolv- 
ed in  water.  It  is,  therefore,  the  medium  through  which  all 
the  essential  substances  find  their  way  into  animal  and  vege- 
table tissues.  The  effect  of  much  is  injurious.  Standing,  as 
it  frequently  does  upon  soils,  it  diminishes  their  temperature, 
and  maintains  them  in  a  state  permanently  too  low  to  admit 
of  the  cultivation  of  the  valuable  plants.  Draining  lands  of 
superfluous  water  is,  in  effect,  raising  their  temperature  several 
degrees.  Where  there  is  too  much  water,  another  condition* 
exists  incompatible  with  that  cultivation  which  the  cereals  re- 
quire ; — the  soil  is  too  compact,  and  it  cannot  be  made  po- 
rous while  in  that  condition .  Draining,  therefore,  makes  the 
soil  warm  and  loose  ; — conditions  essential  to  the  growth  of 
the  most  important  productions. 

Water  is  indispensable,  and  no  seed  can  germinate  without  it. 
Soils  differ  as  to  the  force  with  which  they  retain  or  absorb  it. 


11 

Silicious  soils  part  with  it  readily,  and  absorb  it  slowly.  Of 
all  substances  which  retain  water,  finely  divided  peaty  matter 
is  the  strongest  ; — it  exceeds  clay  und  marl.  Next  to  peaty 
marl,  fine  marl,  containing  some  organic  matter,  ranks  the 
next. 

10.  CARBONIC  ACID. — The  atmosphere  is  regarded  as  the 
source  from  which  it  is  obtained  by  plants.     In  this  combina- 
tion, it  is  always  produced,  and  it  is  generated  in  the  soil. 
Carbonic  acid  is  a  solvent.     Water  charged  with  k  dissolves 
rocks.     The  almost  insoluble  phosphate  of  lime  is  thus  dis- 
solved in  water  by  its  aid. 

Leaves  are  supposed  to  absorb  it  from  the  atmosphere  ;  and 
to  obtain,  in  this  way,  the  carbon  required  to  build  up  their 
structure.  Still,  the  water  in  the  soil  holds  it  in  solution  ;  and 
it  is,  under  those  circumstances,  furnished  the.  plant  by  its 
roots.  This  seems  to  be  the  channel  through  which  carbonic 
acid  may  more  naturally  course  through  its  tissues,  when  it  is 
assimilated.  Carbonaceous,  or  peaty  matters,  also  supply  it. 

11.  CHLORINE. — Common  salt  is  a  combination  of  soda 
and  this  substance.     The  term  chloride  is  applied  to  such 
combinations.     By  itself  it  is  a  poison  ;  in  combination  with 
soda,  it  is  a  fertilizer.     Its  true  value,  however,  is  not  well 
settled.     Some  esteem  it  highly  ;  others  do  not.     On  wheat 
its  effects  are  scarcely  perceptible.     It  promotes  the  growth 
and  yield  of  plums,  and   it   may   be   taken   up  in  sufficient 
quantity  to  give  them  a  saline  taste. 

12.  FLUORINE. — li  is  found  in  combination  with  lime,  con- 
stituting the  mineral  called  fluor  spar.     Although  it  is  a  rare 
substance,  yet  it  is  found  in  the  enamel  of  teeth,  in  bones,  and 
in  milk.     It  is  an  associate  of  phosphate  of  lime.    It  is  never 
added  to  soils  by  itself ;  but,  as  it  accompanies  phosphate  of 
lime.  1  believe,  in  all  cases,  it  is  applied   when  phosphate  of 
lime  is  used.  * 

*  In  the  foregoing  pages,  I  have  used  the  word  clement  iu 
a  different  sense  from  (hat  in  which  it  is  employed  in  chemical 
works.  Real  elements,  or  simple  bodies,  are  never  employed 
as  fertilizers.  They  must  be  compounded,  before  they  are 
received  as  elements. 


12 


The  foregoing  substances  are  detected  in  the  ash  of  plantst 
When  plants,  wood,  coal,  &c.  dre  burned,  the  ash  tha 
remains  is  called  the  inorganic  part  of  the  plant.  If  they 
are  burnt  carefully,  in  a  proper  flame,  we  find  that  the 
particles  composing  the  inorganic  part  preserve  a  reticulated 
structure,  and  often  appears  as  woven.  It  seems,  theiefore, 
to  be  designed  to  perform  the  part  of  a  skeleton  to  the  plant, 
and  give  it  firmness  and  elasticity.  Even  the  delicate  petal  of 
a  plant  has  its  fine  woven  skeleton.  Two  things  should  be 
observed  of  the  inorganic  part : — plants  differ  among  them- 
selves in  the  quantity  they  contain  ;  and  the  parts  of  the  same 
plant  differ  also  in  this  respect.  These  two  facts  lie  at  the  foun- 
dation of  an  improved  and  refined  system  of  agriculture. 
That  improved  system  would  consist  in  adapting  the  quantity 
of  the  inorganic  elements  to  the  special  wants  of  the  plant. 
In  the  present  state  of  our  knowledge,  something  can  be  done, 
but  it  must  be  done  imperfectly.  Hundreds  of  acres  under 
cultivation  can  receive  only  rough  and  imperfect  tillage.  Spe- 
cial agriculture, — that  which  is  conducted  to  meet  the  special 
wants  of  the  crop, — must  limit  and  confine  the  operations  to 
small  plantations.  This  special  agriculture  is,  inpait,  observ- 
ed, when  the  planter  and  farmer  puts  his  wheat  on  soils  best 
adapted  to  wheat ;  or  when  his  Indian  corn  and  potatoes  are 
cultivated  on  soil  best  adapted  to  them.  But  when  the  sys- 
tem of  artificial  farming  is  undertaken,  it  is  necessary  that 
more  knowledge  of  the  soil  should  be  obtained  than  can  be 
procured  by  simple  inspection.  A  full  knowledge  of  the  com- 
position of  soils  is  the  first  step  towards  veal  improvement  in 
the  right  direction.  To  carry  the  improvement  to  perfec- 
tion, -a  full  knowledge  of  the  composition  of  plants  is  also 
necessary  But  plants  vary  much  in  their  relations  to  light, 
and  shade,  heat  and  cold,  to  dry  and  wet  soils.  The  condi- 
tions of  vegetation  best  adapted  to  plants,  or  to  crops,  must 
receive  study  ; — the  reasons  why  they  vary  should  be  deter- 
mined. All  these  points  require  a  knowledge  of  the  economy 
of  vegetation,  or  of  its  physiology.  The  range  of  knowledge 
required  for  the  practice  of  a  special  agriculture,  or  where  spe- 


13 


cial  adaptations  are  attempted,  is  by  no  means  confined  to  a 
small  compass.  This  is  not  to  be  regarded  as  a  discouraging 
feature.  To  progress,  however,  requires  the  utmost  patience, 
and  the  great  danger  is,  that  discouragements  will  spring  up  at 
the  slow  progress  which  is  made,  and  a  right  road  will  be 
abandoned,  because  it  can  be  seen  only  for  short  distances  ;  the 
end  is  yet  hid  in  mist  and  doubt. 

The  organic  part  of  a  plant,  is  that  which  is  consumed  dur- 
ing combustion  :  the  products  being  volatile,  are  all  dissipated. 
It  forms  by  far  the  greatest  part  of  the  vegetable.  Its  source  is 
regarded,  by  Liebig,  as  the  atmosphere.  Still,  the  soil  no 
doubt  furnishes  it,  in  the  form  of  organic  salts,  which  are 
known  under  the  names  of  crenic  and  apocrenic  acids  in  combi- 
nation with  alkaline  matters.  These  are  derived  from  humus 
originally,  plants  first  changing  in  water  into  peat,  which,  in 
itself,  is  scarcely  soluble,  but  which  becomes  so,  in  part,  by 
the  action  of  lime. 

4.  It  has  been  stated  that  certain  elements  are  essential  to  a 
productive  soil.  Knowing  before  hand  what  those  elements 
are,  it  seems  to  be  plain  what  course  our  enquiries  should  take 
when  directed  to  the  improvement  of  any  given  soil.  If  a 
crop  is  defective  in  quality,  and  falls  short  of  its  former  yield,  it 
is  evident  thas  there  isa  want  of  those  elements  which  have  Just 
been  described  ;  the  course  to  be  taken  then,  is  to  analyze  the 
soil,  especially  those  patches  where  the  failure  in  quantity  is 
the  greatest.  If  it  is  found  deficient,  in  some  of  those  ele- 
ments, we  are  put  in  a  way  to  correct  the  evil.  It  is  possible 
that  this  report  may  fall  into  the  hands  of  a  few  who  may 
wish  to  know  the  chemical  composition  of  soil,  really  poor, 
as  well  as  those  which  are  rich.  I  shall  proceed  to  give  the  re- 
sults of  an  analysis  of  several  kinds  of  soil,  in  order  to  make 
my  readers  better  acquainted  with  their  composition,  that  they 
may  be  used  for  a  comparison  hereafter  ;  and  as  they  are  taken, 
from  well  known  plantations  in  different  parts  of  the  State, 
the  results  may  also  be  regarded  with  more  interest  than  if  se- 
lected from  books.  The  planter  wants  to  know  the  reason  of 
the  'failure  of  his  soil  to  produce  its  customary  crops.  But  til- 


14 


lage  must  be  taken  into  the  account,  as  well  as  the  season  : 
and,  indeed,  all  those  variations  in  seasons,  time  of  planting, 
favorable  conditions  of  soil,  &c.  which  are  necessary  to  arrive 
at  a  true  conclusion.  If  the  failures  belong  to  successive  sea- 
sons, equally  favorable  to  the  crop,  there  can  be  no  doubt 
they  arise  from  a  deficiency  of  one  or  more  of  the  inorganic 
elements  of  I  he  soil.  There  may  be  a  kind  of  a  priori  deter- 
mination of  the  cause  of  failures  by  looking  back  for  several 
years,  and  calling  to  mind  the  kind  of  crops  taken  from  it. 
If  they  have  been  cereal,  then  it  is  highly  probable  that  the 
phosphates  and  potash  have  been  deficient.  If  tobacco  has 
been  cultivated  several  successive  seasons,  much  potash  has 
been  carried  away  ;  or,  if  the  potash  is  deficient  in  the  soil 
originally,  lime  may  take  its  place. 

It  is  proper  to  say,  in  this  place,  that  a  registry  of  crops  will 
be  found  useful  ;  for,  if  the  quantity  removed  from  the  soil 
is  noted,  the  number  of  pounds  removed  of  either  potash, 
phosphate  of  lime,  or  lime,  may  be  calculated. 

§  5.  I  shall  proceed  now  to  give  a  number  of  analyses  of 
soils,  for  the  double  purpose  I  have  stated.  The  first  class  be- 
long to  {he  poorer  soils,  and  have  their  representatives  too  com- 
mgn  upon  the  Atlantic  slope  of  this  State.  It  would  be  un- 
just to  attribute  the  faults  of  the  soil  entirely  to  culture  and 
bad  husbandry.  The  truth  is,  they  have  a  sandy  basis,  and 
when  cultivated  for  several  years  in  succession,  without  return- 
ing something  in  the  way  of  fertilizers,  a  fine  marine  sand  is 
exposed,  which,  in  some  places,  is  so  loose  in  its  texture  as 
to  permit  the  vegetable  matter  to  be  blown  from  its  surface. 

The  first  examples  of  soil  show  a  deficiency  in  several  ele- 
ments j  and  from  these  deficiencies  others  have  followed, 
whjch  affect  it  mechanically. 

The  samples  were  taken  from  an  elevated  part  of  the 
Panola  plantation  at  Tarboro'.  The  proprietors  are  R.  Dancy 
and  Norrleet,  who  are  pursuing  agriculture  as  a  profession. 
Their  success  is  proof  that  I  hey  are  pursuing  the  right  road. 


15 

SURFACE.  SUBSOIL. 

Water,  1.13  0.92 

Organic  matter,  2.93  1.72 

Silex,  93.70  94.40 

Alumina  and  peroxyde  of  liron,  1.33  2.40 

Carbonate  of  lime,                   •  .28  .20 
Phosphate  of  lime,  inappreciable 

in  100  grains,  .00  .00 

Magnesia,  .14  .06 

Soluble  silica,  .11  .09 

Potash,  .03  .04 

Soda,  .01  .03 

The  palpable  deficiencies,  both  in  the  surface  and  subsoil, 
are  : — 1.  Alumina  and  per  oxyde  of  iron  $  2.  Lime  ;  3.  Phos- 
phate of  lime  ;  4.  Potash  and  soda  ;  5.  Organic  matter. 

These  deficiencies  leave  a  great  excess  of  fine  sand.  It  is 
proper  to  remark,  that  the  samples  do  not  represent  the  cha- 
racter of  the  field,  but  simply  an  acre  or  two  which  overlooks 
it.  It  is  a  sandy  knoll,  and  its  soil  is  one  of  those  extremes 
which  are  often  met  with.  Such  eminences  suffer  more  by 
cultivation  than  the  lower  parts  ,  and,  hence,  are  liable  to  be- 
come bare,  unless  more  care  is  bestowed  upon  their  cul- 
tivation. 

The  system  formerly  pursued,  or  until  the  plantation  was 
purchased  by  its  present  proprietors,  was  the  common  one  ; — 
a  system  which,  if  carried  out,  would  end  in  total  barrenness  : — 
for  that  is  the  tendency  when  fields  are  cultivated  until  they 
fall  off  greatly  in  their  products,  when  a  period  of  rest  is  al- 
lowed for  their  restoration.  The  rest  being  the  only  mode  by 
which  its  restoration  is  expected, — for,  if  it  is  true  that  certain 
elements  are  necessary  to  fertility,  and  these  exist  only  in  the 
soil,  and  they  are  removed  in  the  crops,  then,  rest  cannot 
restore  them,— the  only  effect  of  rest  is  to  give  time  for  the 
growth  of  trees,  whose  roots  penetiate  deeply,  and  bring  up 
from  greater  depths  than  the  cultivated  plants  can,  these  inor- 
ganic elements,  which,when  assimilated  and  formed  into  leaves 
and  other  parts,  either  fall  again  to  the  ground  in  due  time, 


16 


and  give  back  to  the  earth  what  had  heen  taken  from  it.  By 
this  process,  the  inorganic  matter  is  transferred  from  the  depth 
of  many  feet  to  the  surface.  Hence,  after  years  of  rest,  there 
is  an  appearance  of  renovation. — But,  let  the  cropping  re-com- 
mence, and  the  result  will  be  seen  ;  for  it  will  require  only 
half  the  time  to  exhaust  the  soil.  It  will  require,  in  a  shorter 
time  than  before,  its  period  of  rest.  By  this  course,  or  this 
rest  system,  the  soil  loses  more  of  its  fertilizing  matter,  until, 
finally,  it  will  be  so  far  exhausted,  that  only  the  most  obscure 
plants  can  find  a  foothold. 

To  return  to  the  consideration  of  the  soils.     Knowing  their 
deficiency,  how  can  they  be  corrected  ? — or  what  course  do  f  he 
proprietors  propose  to  renovate  this  field? — seeing  that  they 
reject  the  rest  system  as  a  means  to  this  end, — being  satisfied 
that  they  would  only  entail  a  barren  lot  to  posterity.     One 
of  the  means  resorted  to  was  to  furnish  or  supply  ashes.    The 
plantation  bordering  upon  Tan  river  supplied  decaying  logs, 
brush  and  leaves.     These  were  burnt,  and  gave  them  about 
5000  bushels,  at  a  trifling  cost.     The  ashes  contain  all  those 
elements  which  have  been  removed  in   the   crops  in  former 
years.     It  is  this  fact  which  makes  ashes  valuable  for  this  pur- 
pose.    I  notice  this  fact,  not  so  much   that  this   method   was 
resorted  to. in  this  instance,  for  a  special  purpose  ;  but  because, 
in  all  parts  of  the  State,  it  is  possible  to  pursue  the  same  plan. 
The  decaying  vegetable  matter  on  the  borders  oi  plantations 
is  enormous  ;  and  while  the  ashes   of  refuse   matter  can  be 
procured  at  a  cost  so  trifling,  it  is   folly  to  purchase  bone?  or 
guano.     But  the  soil  is  deficient  in  organic  matter.     To  sup- 
ply this,  various  means  may  be  resorted  to.     Anything  which 
has  lime  contains  it,  and  will  supply  it.  Straw,  leaves,  chips  of 
the  wood-yard,  peat,  or  peaty  soils   hauled  to  the  yards  and 
trod  by  cattle,  are  the  cheapest.     To  carry   out   a  syst<  m  of 
supply,  for  losses  of  all  kinds  sustained  upon  a  plantation,  the 
most  effectual  means  will   be  to  give  to  one  or  two  laborers 
the  business  of  collecting  ferilizers  of  all  kinds.     It  is  a  labor 
which  the  disabled  and  inflfrm  can  perform,  especially  if  aided 
by  a  team  consisting  of  a  single  mule  and  cart. 


17 


By  this  plan,  the  capital  required  to  be  expended  in  the 
purchase  of  guano  and  bones  is  muc^  diminished  ;  for  in  the 
ashes  we  find  phosphate  of  lime,  carbonate  of  lime,  iron, 
potash,  soda,  and  magnesia.  In  all  these  substances  the  soil 
is  deficient.  It  will  produce  sassafras  and  high  briars,  because 
.their  roots  penetrate  deeply,  and  find  a  store  of  food  uncon- 
sumed  by  cultivation.  But  the  cereals,  the  plants  most  valua- 
ble to  man,  though  they  might  exist  and  produce  a  small  crop, 
yet  they  cannot  pay  the  planter,  in  its  present  state,  the  cost  of 
tillage.  The  proprietors  are  pursuing,  therefore,  the  most 
judicious  and  the  cheapest  plan  to  make  this  field  again  fertile. 
They  have  no  marl ;  but,  in  the  ashes  of  useless  logs  and 
brush,  they  find  a  better  material. 

Similar  to  the  foregoing  soil  is  one  which  I  analyzed  for  Mr. 
Benjamin  Brown,  of  Pitt  County,  near  Greenville.  Its  com- 
position is  as  follows  : — 

Water,  .       1.20 

Organic  matter,  1.30 

Silex/  94.75 

Alumifta  and  per  oxyde  of  iron,  1  48 

Lime,  1.02 

Phosphates  inappreciable,  .00 

Magnesia,  trace. 

Potash,,  .01 

Soda,  .02 

Soluble  Silica,  .05 

This  soil  is  less  fertile  than  that  of  a  portion  of  the  Panola 
farm.  Its  color  is  a  light  ash,  and  the  sand  quite  fine,  and 
uniformly  so  over  a  large  field .  The  same  plan  is  proper  for 
the  latter  as  the  former.  I  may  here  suggest  that,  along  with 
similar  means  for  its  restoration,  the  cheap  material  of  bogs  and 
wet  places,  clay  sand  unexhausted  surface  soils,  will  meet  some  of 
the  wants  of  the  case.  Their  use  turns  however,  upon  the 
value  of  labor,  or  the  cost  of  transportation. 

Of  the  same  class  is  a  soil  obtained  at  Mr.  Swift's,  Ring- 
wood,  near  Halifax.  It  is  an  ash  gray  sandy  soil  j  but  th« 

2 


18 

particles  are  angular  and  sharp.     I  found  its  composition  to 
be  similar  to  that  of  the  J  wo  preceding. 

Water,  1.30 

Organic  Matter,  1 .35 

Silex,  94.15 

Alumina  and  per  oxyde  of  Iron,  1.80 

Lime,  .15 

Magnesia,  .01 

Potash,  .01 

Soda,  .01 

So,  also,  I  may  add  to  the  foregoing  a  soil  taken  from  the 
plantation  of  Mr.  Cromarty,  near  Elizabeth,  on  the  Cape 
Fear,  as  it  contains  : — 

Water,  1.250 

Organic  Matter,  1.500 

Silex,  94.800 

Alumina  and  Iron,  .650 

Lime,  •      .010 

Magnesia,  trace. 

Potash,  .006 

Soda,  .004 

This  soil  was  not  tested  for  phosphoric  acid.  There  is  a 
remarkable  deficiency  of  alumina  and  iron,  in  which  the 
phosphoric  acid,  or  phosphate  of  lime,  would  be  found,  if 
found  at  all.  It  is  highly  probable  that  it  exists  only  in  an 
extremely  small  per  centage. 

Some  portions  of  the  plantation  of  Mr.  Pope,  in  Halifax, 
and  of  Dr.  Eppes,  have  the  same  excess  of  =and,  and  a  defi- 
ciency of  the  most  important  elements,  as  may  be  seen  by  the 
following  statement  of  their  composition  : 

Tope  Sub-Soil.  Dr.  Eppas. 

Water,  1.26  1.39 

Organic  matter,  2.20  2.70 


92.08  92.56 
Alumina  and  Per  Oxide, 

Of  Iron  1.64  2.70 

Garb.  Lime,  .08  .13 

Magnesia,  .86  .24 

Soluble  Silica,  .27  ..10 

•  Potash,  .01  traces. 

Soda,  .00  .18 

The  field  of  Dr.  Eppes  was  in  rye. 

There  is  less  exhaustion  in  these  two  soils,  than  in  some  of 
the  foregoing  examples.  It  is  evident,  however,  that  there 
is  a  great  excess  of  sand,  and  a  deficiency  of  Alumina  and 
Iron.  Their  presence  is  required  to  form  a  suitable  basis 
upon  which  to  apply  soluble  fertilizers.  The  foregoing  ex- 
amples of  soil  belong,  it  will  be  conceded.,  to  one  class.  There 
are,  in  all  of  them,  both  excesses  of  one  element  and  defects  in 
others.  They  are  strictly  poor  soils  from  deficiency,  and 
must  be  improved  by  addition  of  those  elements  which 
are  evidently,  in  a  measure,  absent.  While  upon  this 
subject,  it  is  quite  necessary  to  add,  that,  although  soils  of 
the  composition,  which  the  foregoing  possess,  are  unsuited  to 
the  cultivation  of  the  cereals,  still  another  class  of  vegetables 
find  in  such  soils  sufficient  nutriment.  Bordering  the  coast 
of  the  State,  the  surface  is  undulating,  and  rises  at  intervals 
into  rounded  eminences,  and  sinks  into  slight  depressions, 
with  tolerably  well  defined  borders  or  rims,  forming,  as  a 
whole,  a  roiling  surface.  This  border  is  always  formed  of  a 
marine  sand,  which,  in  the  driest  parts,  is  intermixed  with 
vegetable  matter,  upon  the  slopes  and  tops  of  the  eminences^ 
while  in  the  bottom  of  the  bowl,  from  depressions,  the  vegetable 
matter  occurs  in  much  greater  quantities,  and  even  beds  of 
peat  are  often  found  some  two  or  three  feet  in  thickness. 
Marine  sand,  however,  is  the  basis  of  the  soil,  and  when 
washed  and  dried,  is  often  pure  enough  for  glass.  The  tops 
of  the  rounded  eminences  are  generally  whitened  with  oys- 


20 


ter  and  clam  shells,  which  are  bleaching,  and  slowly  disinte- 
grating. This  light  sandy  soil^which,  under  careless  cultivation, 
would  be  converted  into  blowing  sand  in  a  few  years,  yields 
large  profits  in  the  culture  of  the  ground-pea.  This  plant, 
like  the  common  pea  and  clover,  is  constiutionally  adapted 
to  this  soi^  and  yet  the  inorganic  matter,  which  is  found  in 
the  ash  of  the  pea,  is  by  no  means  inconsiderable. 

The  plantation  of  Mr.  JNixon  is  about  ten  miles  east 
of  Wilmington.  Lt  is  situated  immediately  upon  the 
coast,  with  a  soil  and  surface  I  have  just  described.  This 
gentleman  cultivates  the  ground  pea.  The  annual  value  of 
the  crop  rarely  falls  below  six  thousand  dollars.  This  pea 
soil  has  ninety-five  per  cent,  of  silica,  and  from  one  and  a 
half  to  two  per  cent,  of  organic  matter,  and  less  than  one  per 
cent  of  alumina  and  per  oxyde  of  iron,  and  about  ten  hundred 
per  cent  of  lime.  I  have  not  stated,  1  perceive,  that  beneath 
the  sands  there  is  a  stratum  of  brick  clay  :  it  is  sometimes 
within  two  feet  of  the  surface,  and  at  others  ten  feet.  It  is 
no  doubt  a  layer  which  exerts  an  important  influence  upon  the 
cultivation  of  the  loose  surface  sands.  It  holds  water,  and 
hence  aids  in  supplying  water  to  the  sands  which  vest  upon  it. 

The  pea  husbandry  has  to  be  conducted  with  care.  It 
consists  of  an  alteration  of  crops  and  a  rest  of  one  year.  Thus 
to.  the  pea  crop  succeeds  rye,  oats  or  millet  ;  the  latter  is  re- 
commended ;  and  then  rest  for  one  year.  The  soil  should  be 
disturbed  as  little  as  possible  ;  even  cattle  should  not  be  al- 
lowed to  roam  and  feed  upon  the  field,  inasmuch  as  they 
break  up  the  surface  sand.  The  roller  is  an  admirable  instru- 
ment for  these  lands.  The  pea  is  planted  in  hills  about  two 
and  a  half  to  3  feet  apart.  One  pea  is  sufficient  for  a  hill. 
^They  are  hoed  sufficiently  to  keep  out  the  gras?.  The  yield 
is  from  fifty  to  seventy-five  bushels  per  acre.  One  hand  can 
cultivate  five  acres,  The  ash  or  inorganic  matter  of  the  pea 
vine  is  large,  amounting  to  10.25.  The  amount  of  lime,  un- 
combined  with  phosphoric  acid,  shows  that  it  is  a  lime  plant. 
INo  doubt  the  comminuted  shells  constitute  an  important  ele- 
ment in  this  sandy  soil.  The  lime  is  of  averagable  quality. 


21 

The  decomposing   oyster  shells  on  the  summits  and  slopes 
furnish  lime  slowly  to  th<  soil  by  Ihe  aid  of  carbonic  acid. 

In  this  connection,  it  will  be  instructive  to  exhibit  the  com- 
position of  a  good  soil — one  which  is  adapted  to  a  general 
cultivation  :  one  which  produces  corn,  oats,  potatoes,  and 
even  wheat.  I  find  soils  of  this  description  in  many  places, 
and  have  several  analyses  of  them  :  I  shall  select  from  my 
note  book  the  following.  The  first  is  from  Mr.  Swift's  plan- 
tation, in  Halifax  county.  Its  color  is  brown,  and  it  is  com- 
posed as  follows  : 

Water,  4.50 

Organic  Matter,  5.20 

Silex,  T4.30 

Alumina  and  per  oxyde  of  iron,  14.00 

Phosphoric  acid  appreciable. 

Carbonate  of  lime; 

Magnesia. 

Potash, 

Soda, 

98.68 

If  this  soil  is  compared  with  the  gray  sandy  soil  of  the  same 
.plantation,  the  differences  are  too  striking  to  escape  notice. 
To  remark  upon  each  element:  The  water  which  is  obtain- 
ed by  drying,  at  406°  of  fahrenheit,  is  the  quantity  which 
experience  and  observation  prove  to  be  about  right.  The 
organic  matter,  which  is  afterwards  obtained  by  heating  to 
redness,  is  an  essential  material,  from  which  organic  salts, 
soluble  salts  of  lime,  and  the  alkalies  are  formed,  and  which., 
under  the  forms  of  the  so  called  crenates,  may  be  introduced 
into  the  tissues  of  plants.  It  is  in  those  forms,  and  in  these 
combinations,  that  organic  matter,  at  least  in  part,  is  intro- 
duced into  the  system  of  plants.  Where  organic  matter  is 
absent  from  a  soil,. experiment  proves  that  ripe  seed  fail  to  be 
produced.  Silex  is  really  the  basis  of  all  -soils,  and  is  an 
indestructible  and  almost  unchangeable  substance  :  it  becomes 


soluble  in  the  presence  of  the  alkalies,  and  gives  strength  to 
the  stalks  of  the  cereals.  It  is  rarely  deficient  in  quantity  in 
soils  proper,,  for  it  seems  to  me  that  deposites  of  vegetable 
matter,  alone,  can  scarcely  be  called  soils  ;•  still y  as  certain 
plants  are  produced  upon  such  deposits,  they  must  be  ranked 
with  soils. 

6.  Alumina  never  enters  into  the  composition  of  plants  or 
of  animals,  yet  it  is  an  essential  element  of  all  soils.  The 
function  it  performs  is  that  of  a  cement ;  as  it  obviates  or  di- 
minishes the  porosity  of  soils,  and  prevents  the  too  speedy 
percolation  of  water  through  them.  It  is  often  in  excess  ;  in 
many  others  too  little,  as  in  the  first  examples  given  of  the 
composition  of  one  class  of  soils. 

The  function  which  iron  performs  in  a  soil  is  not  well  de- 
termined. It  is,  however,  an  element  of  considerable  impor- 
tance to  living  bodies,  and  is  always  present  in  them.  Bwt7 
it  is  supposed  by  some  physiologists,  that  it  is  instrumental  in 
furnishing  nitrogen.  It  exists  in  two  states — protoxyde  and 
deuotoxyde,  and  is  readily  changed  from  the  latter  lo  the 
foimer  state,  in  the  presence  of  water  and  organic  matter. 
.  Water  is  decomposed  by  the  first,  it  is  supposed,  and.the  hydro- 
gen of  the  water  is  set  free,  which  combines  with  nitrogen  of 
the  air  and  forms  ammonia.  There  is  a  mutual  action  also, 
between  the  organic  matter  and  the  deatox}rde,  by  which  the 
deuotoxyde  is  changed  to  the  protoxyde.  In  this  last  change 
there  is  a  step  preparatory  to  its,  change  into  an  acid,  which  it 
combines  with  lime  and  alkalies.  These  chemical  changes 
are  by  no  means  improbable:  indeed,  they  are  quite  agreeable 
to  what  is  known  in  analogous  cases. 

Phosphate  of  lime  is  one  of  the  most  essential  elements  of 
soils.  No  living  being,  whether  animal  or  vegetable,  is  desti- 
tute of  it.  Bones,  muscles,  nerve,  brain  and  blood,  contain 
it.  Milk  would  be  unsuited  to  the  young  or  old  if  it.  was  not 
rich  in  it.  The  quantity  of  food  is  always  greater  than  the 
system  can  take  up.  It  becomes  excrenientitious  matters, 
and  hence  their  value  as  fertilizers. 


23 


Lime  and  Magnesia  are  known  in  animal  and  vegetable 
structures.  Potash  is  equally  essential  with  the  phosphates- 
Soda  is  undoubtedly  essential  also,  but  perhaps  less  so  than  pot- 
ash ;  at  least  it  is  not  so  expensive,  and  can  be  supplied  at  a 
cheaper  rate.  Water  is  a  solvent  for  all  bodies  which  enter 
into  the  structure  of  plants.  All  matters  must  exist  in  solu- 
tion before  they  can  be  received  into  the  structure  of  plants  or 
animals.  There  is  no  growth  in  the  absence  of  water.  It 
<vill  be  observed,  that  the  most  important  elements  exist  in  the 
smallest  quantities.  Hence  it  is,  that  they  are  liable  to  be  re- 
moved in  many  states,  and  as  they  are  not  at  all  abundant  in 
nature,  they  are  expensive  to  supply. 

7.  The  two  following  are  examples  of  good  soils,  whose 
elements  exist  at  least  in  fair  proportions,  though  the  organic 
matter  is  five  times  the  amount  usually  present.  They  were 
taken  from  the  plantation  of  3Ir.  Purnell,  of  Halifax  County. 
The  first  is  a  dark  brown  soil  •  the  other  a  dark  peaty  soil  : — 
both  breaking  into  angular  fragments  when  dried. 

1.    Cultivated        2.  Uncultivated 
Swamp  Soil.  Swamp  Soil. 

\Yater,  4.27  5.29 

Organic  matter,  12.16  10.30 

Silex,  76.64  78.72 

Alumina  &  per  oxyde  of  iron,  5.69  3.7S 

Lime,  .12  .17 

Magnesia,  .6 

Soluble  Silica,  1.12  .36 

Potash,  .08  .20 
Phosphates  appreciable  in  both  samples. 

Soils  of  the  foregoing  descriptions  are  durable. .  Still,  in 
process  of  time,  the  relations  of  the  elements  are  changed  •  the 
organic  matter  gradually  disappears  ;  and,  with  that  change, 
the  capacity  for  retaining  water  is  diminished,  and  the  more 
expensive  elements,  phosphoric  acid,  potash,  and  soda,  will 
have  been  removed  in  the  crops. 


24 


When  any  of  the  foregoing  soils  were  submitted  to  the 
action  of  pure  water,  they  furnished  soluble  salts,  consisting 
of  sulphates  and  chlorides,  in  the  proportion  of  2.50  per  cent. 
These  salts  are  present  in  all  soils.  Sulphur  and  chloride 
also  are  essential  constituents  of  organized  matter. 

A  soil  from  Mr.  Bullock's  plantation,  near  Tarboro',  is 
another  example  of  a  soil  in  good  condition.  It  contains 

Water5  4.00 

Organic  niatter,  3.20 

Alumina  and  per  oxyde  of  iron,  5.50 

Silex,*  86.80 

Lime,  .12 

Magnesia,  .24 

Potash,  trace 
Phosphoric,  not  tested. 

The  deposits  of  the  Roanoke,  in  Halifax  County,  are 
sometimes  used  as  fertilizers,  and  they  answer  very  well  the 
end  proposed.  They  may  be  regarded  as  having  mainly  the 
chemical  constitution  contained  in  the  following 

•Water,  5.784 

Organic  matter,-  8-160 

Silex,  74.540 

Alumina  and  per  oxyde  of  iron,  10.560 

Lime,  .248 

Magnesia,  *360 

Soluble  Silica,  .038 

Potash,  .220 

Soda,  ,100 

The  Honnoke  brings  down  sediments  of  great  value  ;  and 
they  may  be  profitably  employed  in  enriching  adjacent  fields. 
It  is  evident  the  upper  country  is  wasted  by  its  turbid  branches; 
and  it  is  very  desirable  that  some  cheap,  practicable  means 
might  be  devised,  by  which  iis  sediments  may  be  diminished. 


25 


A  deposit,  or  sediment,  of  the  Tar  River,  upon  the  Panola 
plantation,  does  not  differ  materially  from  the  Roanoke  sedi- 
ments at  Halifax. 

In  this  connection,  i  will  introduce  the  composition  of  a 
good  wheat  soil  •  known  to  be  good,,  by  observation  and  yield 
of  the  crop.  It  is  an  example  taken  from  the  County  of 
Perquimans,  and  from  a  field  of  30  acres  at  least.  The  sur- 
face appearance  is  perfectly  uniform,  and  so  was  the  une 
waving  crop,  as  the  wind  played  gently  over  it. 

Water,  463 

Organic  matter,  4.69 

Silex,  85.73 

Alumina  and  iron,  7.40 

Lime,  .16 

Magnesia,  .€2 

Soluble  Silica,  .92 

Potash,  .06 

Soda,  .01 
Phosphoric  acid  appreciable  in  200  grains. 

The  soil  is  stiff,  or  of  that  charactei  which  is  denominated 
argillaceous.  This  large  field  was  remarkable  for  the  uni- 
formity of  the  crop,  both  as  to  height  and  advancement  ;  and 
it  is  one  of  the  best  examples  of  a  good  wheat  soil  in  the 
State — equalling,  in  every  respect,  the  soils  of  Genessee  and 
Monroe  Counties  in  New  York.  This  kind  of  soil,  however- 
would  not  have  been  noticed  here,  if  it  had  been  confined  to 
'a  single  field.  A  large  proportion  of  the  county  has  this  ex- 
cellent wheat  soil. 

Another  example  of  a  good  wheat  soil  is  that  of  Mr.  Croni" 
arty's,  near  Elizabeth,  on  the  Cape  Fear  River. 

Water,  5.20 

Organic  matter,  9.20 

Silex,  74.03 


26 


Per  oxyde  of  iron  and  Alumina,  10.40 

Lime,  .40 

Magnesia.  .10 

Potash,  .03 

Soda  trace. 

The  phosphoric  acid  remains  to  be  determined. 

I  proposed  to  state  the  composition  of  a  good  soil,  adapted 
to  general  cultivation.  The  wheat  soils  which  have  been 
added  to  those  thus  regarded',  will  serve  as  an  illustration  of 
the  slight  difference  which  is  required  to  convert  a  good  gen- 
eral soil  into  one  adapted  to  a  specific  use  ;  and  this  leads  me 
to  remark,  that  it  is  not  so  much  the  chemical  as  the  physical 
constitution  which  produces  the  change.  For  the  addition  of 
clay  is  what  makes  the  difference  ;  and  I  have  already  sta-ted 
the  fact  that  clay,  or  alumina,  never  enters  into  the  consti- 
tution of  a  plant  or  animal.  It  is  never  assimilated  in  tbo 
animal  body,  though  taken  into  the  digestive  organs  ;  and  it 
is  never  taken  up  by  the  roots  of  plants. 

As  clay  is  regarded  by  some  as  a  fertilizer — and,  indeed, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  of  its  good  effects  when  applied  to  lands, 
deficient  in  clay, — we  may  understand  the  principle  upon 
which  it  operates.  It  is,  however,  true,  that  it  may  carry  with 
it  potash,  and  other  necessary  elements  of  growth  ;  still  we 
should  be  slow  to  advise  its  use  on  that  principle  ;  inasmuch 
as  they  are  usually  in  proportions  too  small  to  justify  the  ex- 
pense of  hauling.  Oircumstances  must  be  very  favorable  to 
make  such  a  procedure  profitable,  except  in  cases  which  will 
come  up  soon  for  consideration. 

We  have  seen,  in  some  of  the  foregoing  examples  of  the 
composition  of  soils,  that  there  are  certain  extremes — 1  might 
say  anomalies, — in  soils  :  they  may  consist  of  sand,  with  a 
trifle  of  organic  matter  ;  and,  when  thus  composed,  they  will 
produce  something,  if  the  sands  aie  fixed.  As  there  are 
sandy  soils  at  one  extreme  of  the  varieties,  so  there  are  peaty 
soils,  or  really  peats,  at  another.  It  has  been  general!)*  sup- 
posed that  the  latter  are  unsuited  to  cultivation,  per  se  ;  and 


27 


in  fact,  this  must  be  i  egarded  as  a  fixed  fact  ;  yet  it  is  surpris- 
ing how  .little  inorganic  matter  is  required  to  convert  the  peaty 
soils  into  highly  productive  ones.  If  a  seed  is  cast  into  a  bed 
of  pure  peat,  a  bed  purely  organic,  or  even  a  m4§l  bed,  it 
soon  sends  forth  its  blade  ;  it  grows  for  a  short  time,  and  then 
turns  yeflow  and  dies  :  it  is  the  last  of  the  seed,  and  it  fails  to 
reproduce  itself  in  the  midst  of  a  magaziue  of  food.  This 
fact  is  applicable  to  the  kind  of  soils  of  which  I  am  about  to 
speak. 

The  State  of  North  Carolina  owns  large  tracts,  of  land,  in 
the  Eastern  Counties  bordering  the  coast,  the  soil  of  which  is 
eminently  of  vegetable  origin.  The  tract  which  I  am  to 
notice  is  situated  in  the  County  of  Carteret,  and  is  known  as 
the  Open  Ground  Prairie.  It  is  within  six  or  eight  miles, 
North,  of  the  town  of  Beaufort,  and  contains  over  80,000 
acres.  In  form  it  is  an  oblong,  being  about  twice  as  long  as 
broad,  its  longer  axis  extending  E.  N.  E.  On  the  S.  E. 
side,  several  creeks  penetrate  into  it ;  or,  rather,  Core  Sound 
sends  into  it  three  short  arms,  which  are  known  as  creeks. 
The  1st  is  Ward's  Creek  ;  2.  Willis  Creek  ,-  3.  Oyster  creek. 
At  the  extreme  S.  E.  border  is  the  North  river  ;  opposite  to 
which,  on  the  other  side,  is  Adams  Creek,  and  then  South 
River.  The  creeks  and  rivers  are  channels  which  render 
access  to  the  Open  Grounds  more  feasible  ;  for  it  should  be 
known  that  nature  has  fortified  these  grounds  by  thickets  of 
brambles. 

Around,  and  upon  the  outskirts  of  the  Op«n  Grounds,  are 
ridges,  which  seem  to  have  enclosed,  at  no  very  distant  day,  a 
body  of  water,  which  was  probably  shallow  and  fresh,  and  com- 
municated with  the  Sound.  By  the  special  direction  of  His 
Excellency,  the  Governor,  1  visited  this  tract,  mainly  for  the 
purpose  of  determining  how  far  it  is  susceptible  of  reclamation 
and  cultivation.  In  this  enterprise  I  was  aided  very  effici- 
ently, and  indeed  kindly,  by  gentlemen  residing  at  Beaufort  ; 
especially  by  Dr.  Arendell,  Hr.  Hellen,  and  Capt.  Farrar. 

We  gained  access  to  ihe  Prairie  through  Ward's  Creek,  a 
branch  of  the  North  River.  In  our  course  we  passed  over 


Piney  Ridge,  which  has  a  breadth  of  one-fourth  of  a  mile,  and 
which  has  vegetable  mould  to  the  depth  of  3J  feet,  which 
reposes  u«p.  clay.  Beyond  this  ridge  is  a  zone  called  the 
Everglades,  which  are  productive  and  rich.  The  soil  is 
between  5  and  6  feet.,  and  reposes  upon  a  sandy  clay,  and  in 
which  there  lies  buned  an  ancient  forest.  Sounding  at  various 
points  as  we  passed  over  the  Everglades,  we  found  lottomat 
various  depths,  varying  from  3  to  10  feet,  and  frequently 
the  sound  penetrated  prostrate  logs  of  considerable  size.  The 
soundings  in  the  Open  Pi  aide  were  sufficiently  numerous  to 
prove  a  great  uniformity  in  the  covering  of  an  ancient  sea 
bottom,  which,  no  doubt,  was  finally  changed  into  a  fresh 
water  lake  or  sound,  which,  by  the  progress  of  slight  eleva- 
tions, from  time  to  time,  raised  the  bottom  above  high  water 
mark.  In  consequence  of  these  changes,  vegetables  peculiar 
to  marshy  districts  sprang  up.  These  vegetables,  especially 
the  humble  kinds,  belong  to  the  family  of  mosses,  but  consist 
mainly  of  a  sphagnum.  Trees  also  grew  upon  this  bottom, 
particularly  the  bay  ;  and  they  evidently  attained  a  large  size. 
But  the  moss  growing  luxuriantly,  has  finally  raised  the  surface 
in  some  places  10  feet  upon  the  sand.  This  renders  the  pre- 
sent surface  less  suitable  for  the  growth  of  trees.  The  Open 
Ground  Prairie  presents  a  level  surface,  so  far  as  can  be  seen, 
covered  with  an  humble  vegetation  of  sedge  and  moss,  wilh 
here  and  there  a  solitary  pine.  Surrounding,  however,  this 
extensive  field,  there  are  lofty  pines,  interspersed  with  oaks 
and  chin co pin.  The  soundings  prove  a  field  far  more  pro- 
ductive in  trees  than  the  present.  This  fact,  taken  by  itself, 
looks  favorably  towards  (he  soil  which  bore  them.  In  gener- 
al, however,  they  were  probably  bays,  and  these  are  not  indica- 
tive of  good  soil.  The  soil  when  brought  up  from  the  low- 
est points  we  could  reach,  was,  to  the  eye,  composed  of  vege- 
table matter,  with  some  sandy  soil .  It.  was  found  loose  towards 
the  surface,  at  least  to  the  depth  of  18 or  20  inches.  It  is  even  a 
sponge,  and  holds  and  retains  water  like  a  sponge.  The  train 
of  argument  which  I  was  disposed  to  adopt  was,  if  this  soil  has 
been  competent  to  produce  trees  and  perfect  seed,  capable  of 


29 


reproducing  species,  itmay  be  put  under  successful  culture.provl- 
ded  it  is  put  into  a  favorable  physical  condition.  Still  this  argu- 
ment does  not  hold  good.  I  was  inclined  to  adoptit  before  I  knew 
the  exact  chemical  composition  of  the  soil .  It  is  fully  establish- 
ed, as  I  have  had  occasion  to  say,  that  a  soil,  purely  vegetable, 
will  not  produce  the  ceieals  ;  neither  will  one  of  pure  sand 
or  pure  lime  produce  them.  Organic  matter  is  an  essential  con- 
stituent, as  is  sand  and  clay  and  lime,  and  yet  neither  by  itself 
can  produce  a  ripe  seed.  There  must  be  a  mixture  of  organic 
and  inorganic  matter.  The  latter  must  also  consist  of  sev- 
eral elements.  These  are  important  principles  which  may  be 
applied  to  the  question  which  was  to  be  settled  by  this  exam- 
ination. The  characterstics  of  the  vegetable  material  weie 
fouad  uniform,  and  hence  it  did  not  require  numerous  analy- 
ses for  to  determine  the  nature  of  the  soil.  Hence,  only  four 
were  taken  for  this  purpose. 

These  samples  were  taken  from  a  depth  of  eighteen  or 
twenty  inches.  The  chemical  examination  of  the  specimens 
taken,  resulted,  uniformly,  in  this;  One  hundred  grains  gave 
three  per  cent,  only  of  inorganic  matter,  proving  the  almost 
total  absence  of  any  earthy  compound — the  three  per  cent,  con- 
sisting of  the  ash  of  the  vegetable  matter.  This  ash  dontain- 
ed  silica,  phosphate  of  lime  andperoxydeof  iron,  lime,  mag- 
nesia and  potash,  or  the  same  elements  which  are  usually 
found  in  the  ash  of  plants  belonging  to  marshes.  A  soil  thus 
constituted  is  not  susceptible  of  a  profitable  cultivation  ;  cer- 
tainly not  competent  to  produce  corn  and  other  cereals,  unless 
it  be  rice.  The  question  then  comes  up,  is  there  a  remedy? 
Can  the  Open  Ground  Prairie  be  brought  into  a  condition  to 
warrant  an  attempt  at  cultivation,  for  a  reasonable  expense? 
It  is  plain  enough,  that  the  first  step  is  to  lay  the  prairie  or 
portions  of  it  dry,  by  draining-.  This  is  feasible,  as  it  is  prov- 
ed by  a  competent  engineer,  to  be  sixteen  feet  above  high  wa- 
ter, and  to  be  also  above  the  storm  tides  of  the  coast.  The 
first  effect  of  draining  will  be  to  reduce  the  level  of  the  prairie 
about  eighteen  inches.  The  surface,  and,  indeed,  the  whole 
bod  7  will  becrme  more  compact  and  close,  and  the  unchang- 


30 


*d  organic  matter  will,  in  time,  decompose.  Another  effect 
will  be,  to  raise  the  temperature  of  the  soil,  which  is  now  con- 
stantly below  that  of  the  dry  or  drained  fields.  Both  of  these 
results  will  promote  a  vegetation  of  better  kind  ;  but  they  can- 
not change  materially  the  composition  of  the  soil.  There  is 
still  something  more  which  must  be  done.  The  method 
which  has  hitherto  been  pursued  with  soils  of  this  kind,  is,  to 
add  quick  lime  only,  under  the  impression  that  it  promotes 
the  speedy  decomposition  of  t  he  vegetable  matter,  and  con- 
verts it  into  an  element  for  plants.  This  practice,  however, 
is  not  founded  upon  just  views  :  it  is  at  least  defective,  and 
besides,  it  is  too  expensive.  The  trials,  too,  of  this,  method, 
have  failed;  not  because  lime  is  injurious.  It  does  not  go  far 
enough  to  add  lime,  as  this  is  a  single  element.  No\\ ,  it  ispro- 
vjed,  I  believe,  that  these  soils  are  unproductive,  for  the  want  of 
inorganic  matter ;  or,  in  other  words,  because  the  earthy 
bodies  are  absent  j  not  because  lime  is  absent  more  than  the 
other  earth,  but  because  they  are  all  absent.  It  follows,  then, 
jf  the  foregoing  principles  are  true,  that  what  is  required,  is 
the  addition  of  soil.  Take  airy  of  the  uncultivated  soils, 
marsh  .mud  and  sand,  anything  of  the  kind  at  hand,  which 
consists  of  earthy  matter,  and  apply  it  as  a  dressing.  Experi- 
ence proves  that  the  quamity  required  is  not  large  ;  that  what 
planters  call  a  heavy  dressing,  is  sufficient.  In  using  soil, 
instead  of  lime,  as  a  fertilizer,  there  is  added  to  the  vegetable 
mould,  the  elements  necessary  for  the  production  of  the  higher 
order  of  plants,  the  grains  or  cereals.  Lime,  magnesia,  phos- 
phoric acid,  alumina  and  iron,  potash,  soda,  etc.,  are  all  in- 
corporated with  the  organic  matier,  which,  together,  constitute 
a  good  foundation  for  cultivation.  This  method  I  propose 
for  treating  those  soils,  which  consist  of  nearly  pure  vegetable 
matter.  Of  its  success,  I  have  no  doubt,  I  legard  this  treat- 
ment as  an  exception  to  the  usual  rule,  for  I  regard  the  prac- 
tice of  hauling  clay  to  ameliorate  a  sandy  soil,  or  the  hauling 
of  sand  to  ameliorate  the  clay,  as  generally  too  expensive. 
But  in  the  case  of  peats  and  peaty  soils,  the  vast  quantity  of 
fertilizing  matter  which  they  contain  makes  the  improvement 


31 


permanent,  or  at  least  quite  lasting  :  the  peat  containing  in  it- 
self lime,  phosphate  of  lime,  potash,  soda,  or  those  ele- 
ments which  are  essential  to  all  plants.  The  pealy  soils  fur- 
nish many  kinds  or  varieties,  depending  upon  the  amount  of 
vegetable  matter  they  contain.  The  Open  Grounds  lie  at  the 
extreme,  inasmuch  as  they  consist  entirely  of  this  matter  ;  es- 
pecially near  the  surface.  An  addition  of  earths  makes  the 
most  productive  corn  soils  known.  "  Some  varieties  of  this  soil 
I  have  examined.  Of  these,  the  two  following  are  from 
Tyrrell  county,  taken  from  the  new  lands  lying  upon  the 
Croatan  sound  :  the  adjacent  ones  being  at  least  moderately 
productive. 

One  hundred  grains  gave  7.30  per  cent,  of  inorganic  mat- 
ter. This  7.30  consisted  of 

Silex  or  sand,  6.02 
Lime,  .02 

Phosphate  of  lime,  alumina  and  iron,  -90 

Potash,  .20 

Soda,  .  .06 
Magnesia,  traces. 

7.20 

The  silex  obtained,  consisted  of  rounded  grains,  and  was 
evidently  sea  sand.  The  per  centage  of  organic  matter  is  very 
large  in  this  sample,  but  less  than  that  of  the  Open  Prairie. 
Still,  this  soil  is  productive  for  many  years. 

The  cultivation  of  such  soils,  as  the  foregoing,  results  in  the 
end,  in  the  consumption  of  the  vegetable  matter  ;  it  is  slowly 
oxydated,  or,  in  other  words,  burnt.  T  his  chemical  result, 
however,  is  essential  to  the  growth  of  the  plant.  In  process  of 
time,  so  much  of  the  vegetable  matter  is  consumed,  that  the 
sand  begins  to  appear  among  the  vegetable  matter ;  having  be- 
come light,  blows  away  and  exposes  more  of  the  sand.  At 
this  stage,  the  productiveness  diminishes.  The  land  is  found 
to  be  benefitted,  but  slightly,  if  any,  by  barn-yard  ^manures, 
.and  it  has  become  an  important  question;  what  shall  be  clone.; 


32 

or  how  shall  the  fertility  of  such  soils  be  kept  up.  On  thia 
question;  there  is  but  little  doubt  what  that  method  should  be; 
it  is  to  add  common  soil  from  the  road  side,  or  from  adjacent 
hills,  and  from  the  most  accessible  points.  It  is  to  be  under- 
stood that  they  do  not  require  organic  matter;  there  is  enough 
of  that  ;  and  inorganic  matter  furnishes  the  requisite  quantity 
of  phosphate  of  lime  and  potash,  by  its  chemical  changes.  In 
this  condition,,  is  a  part  of.  a  large  field  near  Greeneville,  in 
Pitt  county ,  owned  by  Mr.  Brown.  It  originally  contained 
more  inorganic  matter  than  the  soil  from  Terrell  county  ;  but, 
in  consequence  of  long  cultivation,  the  sand  begins  to  pre- 
dominate, and  the  vegetable  matter  blows  away.  Decom- 
posed slate  rock  would  form  the  best  application  to  such  fields; 
next  to  which  clay  and  common  soil  or  marl  mixed  with 
earth. 

Closely  allied  to  the  foregoing  peaty  soils  are  the  two  fol- 
lowing: They  were  taken  from  the  plantation  of  Captain 
Farrar,  of  Beaufort,  Carteret  county.  No.  1,  I  found  com- 
posed of  the  following  substances  : 

Organic  matter,  •    24.65 

•  Water,  6.75 

Silex,  55.37 

Alumina,  7.62 

Per  oxyde  of  iron,  4.80. 

Lime,  .40 

Magnesia,  .29 

Potash,  .09 

Soda,  .03 

The  phosphoric  acid  was  not  determined.  The  soil  was 
dried  in  the  open  air,  and  still  it  retained  6.75  per  ct.  of  wa- 
ter, showing  its  retentiveness  when  charged  with  organic  mat- 
ter. 

The  other  sample  of  soil,  marked  No.  4,  was  composed  of 

Organic  matter,  24.94 

Silex,  58.34 


33 


Alumina  and  per  oxyde  of  iron,  10.49 

Lime,  .27 

Water,  4.47 

Magnesia,  .15 

Potash,  .06 

Soda,  -05 

98.77 

Both  soils  were  taken  from  wet  low  grounds,  recently  re- 
claimed by  ditching.  They  show  the  composition  of  good 
swamp  lands,  which,  after  reclamation  by  draining,  will  be- 
come the  most  valuable  of  ail  lands  for  corn. 

The  amount  of  organic  matter  varies  constantly,  and  we 
find  a  gradual  approach  to  the  common  soils,  or  those  furnish- 
ing from  three  to  six  per  cent,  of  organic  matter.  The  two 
following  are  of  an  intermediate  variety.  They  were  taken 
from  the  plantation  near  Halifax.  The  first  has  been  under 
culture  for  a  long  time. 

Organic  matter,  14.14 

Water,  4.27 

Silex,  78.64 

Alumina,  1.69 

Per  oxyde  of  iron,  1.40 

Lime,  .12 

IVJagnesia,  .10 

Potash,  .03 

100.39 

The  last  is  a  dark  brown  soil,  breaking  into  angular  frag- 
ments or  lumps  after  drying  it.  It  is  composed  of 

Water,  4.58 

Organic  matter,  12.00 

Silex,  77.62 


34 

Alumina,  4.25 

Lime,  J8 

Magnesia,  trace 

Potash,  .06 

98.69 

Phosphoric  acid  undetermined. 

Upon  the  Cape  Fear  River,  I  examined  many  localities 
where  the  soil  would  not  differ  from  the  two  last.  Among 
them  should  be  ranked  a  lanje  tract  of  land  owned  by  Mr. 
E.  M.  McDowell.  The  soil  alluded  to  has  been  partially 
drained,  and  put  in  part  under  culture.  The  organic 
matter  varies  from  12  to  24  per  cent.  It  ranks  among  the 
best  lands  on  the  south  side  of  the  Cape  Fear. 

Where  organic  matter  abounds,  the  soil  is  dark  colored,  and 
it  requires  no  analysis  to  determine  the  fact.  It  will  be  ob- 
served by  many,  that  there  is  no  determination  or  separation 
of  the  coarse  from  the  fine  matters.  The  fact  is,  the  soils 
consist  entiiely  of  fine  matter  ;  it  is  frequently  too  fine  :  but 
fine  materials  are  better  than  coasre,  inasmuch  as  a  coarse 
gravel,  destitute  of  fine  matter,  is  nearly  barren,  but  a  quanti- 
ty of  coarse  with  the  fine  improves  the  mechanical  condition. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  give  the  analysis  of  two  fertile  soils, 
which  cover  a  large  portion  of  Southern  Russia,  and  which 
stretch  into  Hungary.  It  is  a  vegetable  mould,  not  much 
unlike  some  of  those  soils  the  composition  of  which  has  been 
given.* 

Sand,  52.77  51.84 

Silica,  18.65  ]7.80 

Alumina,  8.85  8.90 

Oxydeofiron,  5.33  5.47 

Lime,  1.13  .87 

Magnesia,  .067  -00 

*  Booth's  Geological  Report  of  Delaware,  p.  127. 


35 


Water,  4.01  4.08 

Phosphoric  acid,  0.46  .46 

Organic  matter,  7.95  10.33  Hermann. 

The  insoluble  matter  in  this  analysis  71.42. 

If  this  soil  is  taken  as  the  standard  for  comparison  with 
other  soils,  it  should  be  observed  that  the  quantity  of  alumina 
and  iron  might  be  diminished  without  impairing  its  fertility  ; 
and  the  quantity  of  insoluble  matter  also  diminished  or  in 
creased,  without  influencing  its  properties  essentially  ;  that  is, 
it  may  contain  3  or  4  per  cent,  of  silica,  or  less,  and  no  per- 
ceptible chance  would  follow  from  either.  The  quantity  of 
lime  is  large,  if  compared  with  any  soil  in  this  country,  unless 
we  select  a  local  one,  resulting  freai  the  disintegration  of 
a  limestone  rock,  or  one  composed  of  marl. 

1  may  lake  this  opportunity  to  remark,  that  we  have  no 
soils  which  can  be  called  calcareous,  or  which  are  strictly  en- 
tiiled  to  that  denomination.  If  we  may  appeal  to  observation 
and  experiment,  it  is  established  that  a  small  per  centage  of 
lime,  only,  is  necessary  to  the  highest  degf ee  of  fertility  ;  and 
yet  this  small  per  centage  is  necessary.  If  there  is  present 
one-half  of  one  per  cent,  it  seems  to  be  sufficient;  for  it  is 
rare  to  find  a  larger  quantity  in  productive  soils. 

8.  I  have  not  yet  examined  the  marshy  lands  of  the  East- 
ern Counties,  adjacent  to  the  sea,  sounds,  and  rivers,  as  I 
design.  I  regard  th-em,  however,  as  among  the  most  fertile 
and  valuable  lands  of  the  State.  It  is  upon  these  low  bottoms, 
where  the  sluggish  streams  are  partially  dammed  and  obstruct- 
ed by  brush  and  logs,  that  the  overflow  of  waters,  bearing 
more  or  less  of  sediment,  that  accumulation  of  organic  mat- 
ter, takes  place.  , 

Centuries,  however,  have  elapsed  since  this  process  began; 
and  though  the  bottoms  are  composed  of  more  sand  than  clay, 
still,  they  have  accu ululated  from  three  to  ten  feet  of  vege- 
table matter  ;  which,  by  the  operation  of  chemical  and  phy- 
sical causes,  is  being  conveited  into  the  most  productive  of 
soils.  In  some  instances,  we  have  seen,  as  in  the  Open  Prai- 


36 


ries  of  Carteret,  a  growth  of  vegetable  matter,  instead  of  a 
deposit,  as  sediment  ;  in  others,— as  in  lands  which  are 
overflowed  during  the  wet  seasons  of  the  year — a  mixture  of 
both ;  or  growth  commingled  with  sediments.  The  best 
lands  are  the  latter — where  a  soil,  with  a  magazine  of  food 
for  plants,  has  accumulated,  that  nature  has  made  the  best 
provision  f  >r  the  planter.  Notwithstanding  a  bountiful  soil  is 
thus  made,  still  it  should  not  be  forgotten  that  it  can  be  ex- 
hausted. The  time,  however,  is  so  far  ahead,  that  it  seems 
almost  needless  to  express  our  fears  and  caution  to  the  pro- 
prietors of  such  lands.  But  yet  the  fertile  lands  of  the  West, 
which  appeared  to  the  early  settlers  as  inexhaustible,  are 
found  now  to  have  diminished  in  the  burthen  of  their  crops, 
and  to  require  the  application  of  fertilizers  to  bring  them  up 
to  their  original  fertility. 

9.  The  importance;  which  J  have  given  to  the  elements  of 
soils,  and  the  emphasis  with  which  1  have  inculcated  their 
srveral  uses,  may  lead  my  readers  to  infer  that  it  is  sufficient  to 
supply  them,  in  order  to  secure  large  returns.  I  am,  therefore, 
inclined  to  correct  any  misapprehension  of  this  kind,  by  sta- 
ting somewhat  in  detail,  the  mechanical  or  physical  proper- 
ties which  soils  should  possess,  in  order  to  insure  their 
fertility. 

1.  FINE  AND  COARSE  MATERIALS. — A  productive  soil  has 
usually  a  due  admixture  of  coarse  and  fine  materials.     When 
it  is  all  coarse,  it  is  so  porous  that  water  passes  through  it  too 
rapidly.     A  much  larger  quantity  of  fertilizing  is  required, 
am!  a  large  proportion  is  lost.     Gravels  have  been  called  hun- 
gi     because  they  consume  so  much  manure  :  besides,  there 
isiiule  if  any  opportunity  for  chemical  action.     We  must  not 
lose  sight  of    the  chemical  forces.     Coarse   materials  cannot 
act  upon  each  other. 

2.  THE  OTHER  EXTREME. — A  very  fine  soil  has  defects  al- 
most equally  great :  when  impalpable,  it  borders  upon  barren- 
ness.    The  disadvantages  of  a  fine  soil   are,  water  finds  its 
way  too  slowly  through  it ;  it  intercepts  the  free  passage  of  air, 


37 


or,  in  other  words,  it  is  defective  in  its  apparatus  of  circula- 
tion, and  obstructs  the  growth  of  roots.  If  a  seed  is  closely 
compacted  in  clay,  it  may  be  preserved  for  an  indefinite  time. 
For  germination,  aii ,  moisture  and  heat  are  each  necessary. 
In  an  impalpable  soil,  air  is  excluded.  Manures  applied  to 
dose  soils  or  fine  compact  ones,  are  deprived  of  the  air  they 
require  to  fit  them  to  act  as  food  for  the  plant. 

Taking  the  two  extremes  and  comparing  them  together,  we 
find  the  former  consume  manures,  while  the  latter  retain  them 
unchanged:  the  first  permit  a  rapid  passage  through  them; 
the  latter,  the  passage  is  obstructed  aiid  water  is  not  allowed  to 
enter.  The  impalpable  and  close  soils  are  composed  gener- 
ally of  clay  $  it  is  sometimes  a  pot  clay.  As  a  soil,  it  is  dffi- 
cult  to  work  :  moreover,  it  is  more  difficult  to  secure  the  prop- 
er time  for  working  it.  In  the  Spring,  it  is  too  wet  for  a  time, 
bat  it  is  slowly  drying,  and  in  process  of  time  it  will  be  in  the 
best  state  for  working,  but  it  soon  passes  from  a  state  of  wet 
to  one  in  which  it  is  too  dry.  If  worked  when  wet,  it  is  inju- 
red for  the  whole  season  :  indeed,  it  may  be  regarded  as  lost 
for  the  year,  if  it  is  plowed  in  a  stale  when  it  is  quite  wet.  But, 
if  too  dry,  it  is  hard  and  lumpy.  To  cultivate  such  soils  suc- 
cessfully, their  constitutions  must  be  well  understood. 

Ordinal y  clay  soils  may  be  managed  by  draining  and  the 
free  use  of  lime.  The  forwardness  in  Spring  of  a  wet  ciay 
soil,  is  a  gain  of  two  weeks  by  draining,  and  .1  diminution  of 
one-fourth  of  the  labor  in  tillage,  and  an  increase  of  crop 
equal  to  one-half,  and  a  total  removal  of  the  uncertainly  in 
the  time  of  plowing.  The  use  of  lime  breaks  it  up,  and  im- 
parts porosity  and  lets  in  air,  moisture,  and  the  free  penetration  of 
roots.  The  light  colored  clays  are  not  so  kind  as  the  drab  or 
yellow  ;  the  white  are  I  ess  productive.  The  common  express- 
ion is,  they  are  cold,  and  it  may  be  cited  as  one  instance,  \vh<  re 
a  common  expression  is  literally  correct,  for  colored  soils  absorb 
more  heat  than  white  ones  ;  their  tem|>erature  is  absolut*  !y 
higher.  The  coloring  matter,  which  is  iron,  diminishes  ihc 
cohesion  of  clays  ;  the  colored  ones  are  therefore  less  compact 
and  far  more  productive. 


38 


From  the  foregoing  remarks,  it  follows  that  the  best  soils 
aie  composed  of  both  coarse  and  fine  materials — coarse,  that 
the  air  and  moisture  may  penetrate  them — fine,  that  chemical 
action  and  solution  may  be  promoted,,  and  the  fertilizing  mat- 
ter retained.  Oyster  and  clam  shells  are  useful,  even  if  un- 
changed, by  promoting  and  preserving  porosity  in  the  midst  of 
finely  divided  matter.  The  principles  laid  down  are  practi- 
cal and  easy  of  application,  provided  accurate  observations 
are  first  made. 

10.  The  mechanical  properties  of  sand  are  directly  oppo- 
site to  those  of  clay.  But  I  need  riot  add  to  this  head  as  it  is 
too  well  known  to  require  additional  comment.  There  is  a 
practice  which  should  be  recommended  in  cultivating  sandy 
soil  ;  it  is  to  pass  the  heavy  roller  over  them  when  moist.  Seed 
sown  upon  the  surface  and  then  rolled,  ensures  its  germina- 
tion ;  if  neglected,  it  is  likely  to  fail.  Light  drifting  sand 
may  be  fixed  by  the  roller.*  The  comparative  value  of  clayey 
and  sandy  soils  have  not  been  satisfactorily  settled.  The  ex- 
pense of  working  the  former  is 'always  greater  than  that  of  the 
latter,  but  greater  crops  are  usually  obtained.  Sandy  soil3 
have  not  stood  so  high  as  they  deserve.  Their  easy  tillage  and 
middling  crops,  which  may  be  obtained  for  a  succession  of 
years,  pay  well.  They  stand  drouths  better  than  clay  soils, 
and  admit  of  early  tillage.  A  plantation  is  more  valuable  if 
it  has  both  varieties  of  soil. 

There  are'some  facts,  which  go  to  show  that  argillaceous  soils 
possess  an  affinity,  if  it  may  he  so  called,  for  ammonia,  supe- 
rior to  a  sandy  soil.  If  so,  it  is  one  reason  why  argillaceous 
soils  are  better  adapted  to  wheat  than  sandy,  though  not  the 
only  reason.  The  fact  that  clay  absorbs  ammonia,  and  re- 
quires a  strong  heat  to  set  it  free,  is  an  important  agricultural 
fact,  tn  order  to  make  the  most  of  the  absorbative  power  of 
argillaceous  and  other  soils,  fresh  surfaces  should  be  made  by 

NOTE. — The  effect  of  the  roller  is  confined  to  the  surface. 
It  does  not  press  together  the  material  below,  which  has  been 
loosened  by  the  plow.  Soils  then  are  not  compacted  by  ifc  j, 
it  does  not  destroy  the  effect  of  the  plough. 


39 


ploughing,  harrowing,  or  hoeing.  New  and  fresh  stirfaceg 
are  much  more  efficient  absorbers  of  ammonia  than  those 
which  have  remained  unstirred  for  weeks.  The  late  Professor 
Eaton  was  in  the  habit  of  illustrating  this  fact,  and  applying 
it  to  agriculture,  by  inserting  fresh  earth  beneath  a  receiver  filled 
with  ammonia.  The  absorption  took  place  almost  instantly. 
The  application  of  this  fact  to  agriculture,  was  macre  as  long 
ago  as  1S20.  One  of  the  advantages  of  ploughing  and  hoe^ 
ing  was  attributed  to  the  increased  power  of  absorption  of 
ammonia  from  the  atmosphere,  by  the  new  surface  thus  made 
and  exposed. 

There  seems  to  have  been  a  special  provision  for  furnishing 
a  supply  of  ammonia,  from  which  nitrogenous  matters 
in  grain  are  derived,  and  although  ammonia  forms  an  incon- 
siderable part  of  the  atmosphere,  yet  bodies  of  various  kinus 
absoib  it  with  the  greatest  avidity,  and  in  such  quantites  that 
it  may  be  detected  by  chemical  tests.  I  have  already  rpoken 
of  ammonia.  (§3.)  and  have  there  suggested  that  the  natural 
supply  is  adequate  to  the  natural  wants  of  the  vegetable,  and 
that  for  the  purpose  merely  of  preserving  and  sustaining  all 
the  species  of  plants  now  upon  the  earth,  the  atmospheric  sup- 
ply is  sufficient.  Even  a  luxuriant  vegetation  is  sustained, 
and  may  be  for  an  indefinite  period,  where  herbage  is  mainly 
the  product ;  yet,  when  the  large  products  of  grain  are  drawn 
from  the  soil,  then  the  natural  supply  is  insufficient,  and  the 
farmer  is  obliged  to  resort  to  artificial  supplies. 


MEANING    OF   THE    WORD,    IMPROVEMENT.— 
COMPOSITION  OF  SHELL  MARL,  <fcc. 

§11.  The  soils  of  the  eastern  counties,  it  has  been  seen, 
furnish  several  distinct  varieties,  some  of  which  lie  at  the 
extremes.  The  original  constitution,  which  is  sandy, 
aided  by  long  cultivation,  without  due  attention  to  the  ap- 
plication of  manures,  has  brough  them  to  a  condition,  in 


40 


many  instances,  of  extreme  poverty ;  and  hence,  it  has  be- 
come a  question  of  great  importance,  how  they  shall  be 
restored  in  a  measure  to  their  original  iertility.  This  is 
not  the  only  question,  however,  respecting  the  soils  of  the 
lower  counties — how  they  shall  be  restored.  Another  comes 
up  of  equal  if  not  greater  importance,  viz  :  How  are  the 
soils,  which  are  now  in  a  good  condition,  to  be  prevented 
from  becoming  poor  and  exhausted,  and  yet  be  subject  to 
cultivation?  Although  we  have  presented  two  questions, 
yet,  if  either  is  answered,  the  other  is  also  in  the  main  ;  for 
the  same  principles  are  applicable  to  the  two  cases.  The 
questions  are  not,  how  shall  the  crops  be  increased,  for 
methods  are  at  hand  for  doing  this,  without  a  permanent 
improvement  of  the  soil.  The  crops  of  a  plantation  may 
be  greatly  increased  by  deep  ploughing,  and  yet  the  soil  is 
not  virtually  and  essentially  improved.  Many  are  making 
a  mistake  in  this  respect.  So,  the  system  of  clovering,  or 
the  use  of  green  crops,  might  be  followed  out  on  a  system 
combined  with  an  alteration  of  crops.  This,  too,  has  been 
regarded  as  an  improvement  of  the  soil  ;  yet,  it  is  not  so, 
unless,  indeed,  it  is  accompanied  with  such  additions  of 
inorganic  matter,  which  the  soil  require,  and  which  are 
removed  in  the  crops.  The  crops  may  be  greatly  increased 
without  an  improvement  of  the  soil,  and  planters  cannot 
learn  this  fact  too  soon.  I  do  not  object  to  the  plan  of, 
increasing  the  crops  ior  the  seasons,  by  deep  ploughing, 
subsoiling,  and  the  use  of  green  crops ;  but  each  and  all, 
by  themselves,  cannot  be  regarded  as  an  improvement  of 
the  soil.  There  is  something  more,  and  it  consists  in  the 
application,  along  with  deep  ploughing,  subsoiling,  and 
green  crops,  of  all  the  elements  which  fertilizer,  and  are 
necessary  to  supply  the  losses  in  the  removed  elements  ;  and 
it  is  only  by  pursuing  this  method  that  the  spirit  of  the 
word  Improvement  will  be  realized. 

In  one  sense,  it  is  true,  that  any  system,  which  adds  a 
stock  of  essential  elements  to  a  soil,  is  an  improvement ; 
thus,  by  the  use  of  green  crops,  or  clover,  or  peas,  we  ob- 


41 


tain  from  the  atmosphere  organic  matter  in  the  plants, 
which  is  ploughed  in.  and  added  to  the  soil.  If  the  culti- 
vation, however,  goes  on,  this  new  accession  of  organic 
matter  shortens  the  time  during  which  the  inorganic  mat- 
ter will  last  ;  for  more  of  the  latter  is  used  in  the  increased 
crops.  There  must  be  preserved  a  balance  between  the  two 
kinds  of  matter  :  if,  for  example,  there  is  too  much  organic 
matter  in  the  straw  of  wheat,  as  there  frequently  is,  when 
cultivated  on  new  grounds,  it  is  weak  and  fulls  down  ;  or 
else,  there  is  an  excessive  development  of  the  herbaceous 
part,  and  but  little  grain  or  seed. 

But  I  shall  leave  this  question  to  take  care  of  itself  for 
the  present:  it  is  time  to  speak  of  the  real  sources  of  im- 
provement in  the  soils,  as  found  in  the  lower  counties: 

The  first  substance  requiring  attention,  is  marl,  a  term 
which  was  originally  applied  to  substances,  which  consis- 
ted in  part  of  carbonate  of  lime  ;  but,  as  oftener  used,  it 
includes  calcareous  clays,  with  or  without  shells,  and 
argillaceous  matters,  containing  silica,  iron  and  potash,  and 
probably,  phosphate  of  lime,  but  destitute  of  carbonate  of 
lime.  The  former  are  the  marly  clays,  and  shell  marl— the 
calcareous  matter  is  in  the  form  of  a  carbonate  ;  the  latter 
is  the  green  sand,  and  contains  potash,  as  its  principal 
fertilizer,  though  it  is  now  rendered  highly  probable  that 
phosphate  of  lime  is  always  present,  and  active  in  produc- 
ing the  results  which  follow  from  its  use.  In  the  green 
sand,  however,  there  is  no  carbonate  of  lime,  or  but  a  trace, 
and  hence,  it  may  be  better  never  to  apply  the  term  marl 
to  the  green  sand,  as  it  is  so  different  in  composition  from 
the  true  marls,  and  so  different  in  its  geological  position 
and  age.  But  both  are  found  in  the  part  of  the  State  of 
which  I  am  speaking,  one  or  the  other  being  found  in  beds 
from  Currituck  to  Brunswick,  and  from  Wake  to  Carte- 
ret.  The  beds  are  not  continued  over  very  large  areas : 
the  green  sands,  however,  are  less  isolated  and  more  con- 
tinuous than  the  shell  marl  beds. 


42 


12.  The  materials  which  are  employed  on  the  Atlantic 
slope,  in  Virginia,  Norih  and  South  Carolina,  and  other 
States  still  farther  South,  helong  to  two  great  sections  or 
systems  of  rocks.  The  superior  is  the  tertiary  ;  the  in- 
ferior system  the  cretaceous,  occupying,  in  the  latter,  the 
lowest  position  in  the  system.  It  is  that  pait  known  as  the 
green  sand,  trom  the  circumstance,  that  the  beds  are  green 
or  greenish,  from  the  presence  of  numerous  grains  of  sili- 
cate of  iron  and  potash. 

I  propose  to  describe  the  first  or  tertiary  beds.  These, 
so  far  as  my  observation  extends,  are  always  isolated,  or 
confined  comparatively  within  narrow  limits.  They  are 
not  spread  out  so  as  to  form  a  continuous  bed  ;  but  limited 
usually  to  a  few  acres,  perhaps  many  acres,  arid  complete- 
ly disconnected  or  separated  from  other  beds.  This  view 
of  them  is  important,  inasmuch  as  it  does  not  follow,  that, 
because  a  bed  appears  in  a  branch,  on  one  side  of  the  plan- 
tation, that  it  will  be  found  on  the  other  side  of  it,  though 
very  desirable  that  it  should.  Some  beds  are  confined  to 
an  area  of  an  acre.  Some  are  but  a  lew  rods,  square,  and 
others  are  still  smaller,  and  appear  like  nests  of  shells  in  the 
midst  of  sands.  The  beds  of  oysters  arid  clams  are,  indeed, 
good  representatives  of  marl  beds,  as  to  extent:  some  larger, 
others  smaller.  If  we  examine  the  bed  or  floor  of  the 
ocean,  by  soundings,  we  shall  find  it  composed  of  materials, 
especially  along  the  coast,  very  much  the  same ;  but  its 
surface  is  not  evenly  spread  out.  In  some  places  it  is 
smooth  and  level  ;  in  others,  it  rises  in  ridges  and  hills,  with 
their  vallies.  This  disposition  of  the  materials,  forming 
the  ocean's  bottom,  provider,  if  it  may  be  so  called,  a  va- 
riety of  climates — some  adapted  to  the  wants  of  living 
beings  ;  others  incompatible  with  Iffe.  Some  are  sheltered, 
and  others  are  exposed  to  the  lashing  of  the  waves.  It  is 
in  these  sheltered  abodes  that  we  find  life  in  its  various 
conditions  and  stages  of  development.  While  upon  shores 
and  in  soundings,  where  the  waves  and  the  elements  are  at 
strife,  life  is  absent,  from  its  exposures.  So,  when  the 


43 

beings  whose  remains  constitute  and  form  these  marl  beds, 
peopled  the  waters,  there  were  sheltered  places,  quiet  and 
still  bays,  which  favored  the  development  of  life,  and  it  is 
upon  such  areas  that  these  deposits  were  made,  while 
other  areas,  exposed  to  sudden  changes,  separated  those, 
teeming  with  life,  from  each  ether.  We  have  reason  to 
infer,  then,  from  observations  upon  the  ocean's  bottom,  that 
the  areas  of  the  marl  beds  would  not  be  found  spread  out 
continuously;  though  marl  beds,  possessing  characters  in 
common,  furnishing  the  same  kinds  of  shells,  will  occur  at 
wide  and  distant  points.  Not  only,  too,  are  the  beds 
characterized  by  similarity  of  forms  and  kinds,  but  the 
accompanying  sediments,  sediments  of  the  same  mineral 
character,  would  be  found  with  them.  This  would  be 
necessary:  it  is  one  of  the  provisions  of  life — the  medium 
which  conveys  their  food  and  the  habits  and  habitants 
must  and  should  agree. 

13.  We  re;ison,  then,  from   life   to  things,  and  things  to 
life.      Wherever  the  conditions  for  the  life  of  the  clam  and 
oyster  were  favorable,  or,   to   be  more  general,  where  the 
canditions   of  life    were  favorable  to   a   larger  number  of 
Molusca,  there  they    would    be   congregated,  because   this 
food,  the  climate  and  all,  would  conspire  to  favor  develop- 
ment and  growth.     Similarity   oi  organic  forms,  then,  he- 
come  indicative  of  the    value  of  marl    deposits,  over  wide 
and  extended  areas.     Marls   which   contain  similar  shells 
will  be  found  to  possess  nearly  the  same  agricultural  value. 

14.  The    marls  are  distinguished   by  different  names  in 
the  vicinity  where  they  occur.     The  red,  blue,  and  shell 
marl  are  names  applied   to   beds   occupying  the  same  geo- 
logical positions.     Sometimes  there   are  some   differences 
in  their  properties  and  value.     The  red  marl  owes  its  color 
to  a  change  in   the  oxyde  of  iron  mingled  with  the  shells. 
It  has  changed   from  a  state  of  protoxyde  to  the  peroxyde. 
It   is   due  to   exposure    to   the    atmosphere,    and    is   usu- 
ally   the    superior    part   of    the   bed    which   has    under- 


gone  this  change.  The  blue  marl  still  holds  the  iron  ia 
a  state  of  protoxyde,  which  imparts  a  bluish  green  color  to 
the  mass.  The  lerrn  blue  marl,  however,  is  frequently 
given  to  the  green  sand,  an  inferior  and  older  formation, 
and  which  owes  its  fertilizing  properties  to  potash,  as. I 
have  already  had  occasion  to  say.  We  might  make  a  dis- 
tinction between  the  sandy  marls  and  the  argillaceous.  In 
the  first,  sand  predominates:  in  the  other,  a  bluish  clay. 
Both  effervesce  with  acids  ; — -the  latter  is  the  most  valua- 
ble. The  proportion  of  carbonate  of  lime  is  variable;  or, 
what  would  amount  to  the  same  thing,  the  amount  of  sand 
is  variable  in  the  same  bed,  and  in  the  distant  beds  which 
occupy  the  same  position ;  though  to  the  lime  is  due  the 
existence  of  the  animal  which  inhabited  the  shells. 

§  15.  The  marls  of  Cape  Fear  river  furnish  all  the  va- 
rieties which  have  been  noticed  in  the  foregoing  paragraphs. 
The  first  beds  which  appear,  upon  the  river,  are  about  ten 
miles  above  Elizabeth,  in  Bladen  County. 

Mr.  Lassaine's,  which  is  the  highest  point  visited  from 
Elizabeth,  is  sandy  ;  Mr,  Gillespie's  is  argillaceous  ;  and 
Mr,  Cromarly's  is  more  calcareous,  and  parts  of  it  are  ce- 
mented together.  It  is  a  mass  of  shells,  and  has  been 
found,  by  experience,  a  valuable  fertilizer.  It  is  seven 
feet  thick,  and  underlies  many  acres. 

Mr.  Cromarty's  marl  yields 

Silex, 

Alumina,  phosphate  of  lime  and  iron, 

Carbonate  of  lime, 

Magnesia, 

Potash  and  soda 

100.90 

§  16.  The  quantity  of  marl  containing  the  per  centage 
of  lime  given  above,  requires,  per  acre,  for  soils  not  re- 
markably sandy,  about  200  bushels.  The  experience  of 


45 


planters  is,  that  very  poor  soils  are  injured  for  a  year  or 
more  by  the  application  of  marl,  except  in  small  quantities. 
One  hundred  bushels  is  regarded  as  sufficient  for  sandy 
exhausted  lands.  When  two  or  three  hundred  has  been 
used  per  acre,  the  land  is  said  to  be  burnt,  or  the  vegetation 
is,  in  part,  destroyed  ;  and  the  practice  is  to  begin  with  the 
lowest  quantity,  and  proceed  in  marling  by  subsequent  ad- 
ditions ;  being  governed  by  the  quantity  of  organic  matter 
restored  to  the  soil.  Many  planteis  have  observed  that 
hetivy  marling  is  injurious  to  poor  lands,  who  do  not  at- 
tempt to  give  a  reason  for  the  statement.  If  the  common 
opinion  respecting  the  danger  of  applying  too  much  marl 
to  poor  soils  is  founded  on  correct  principles  ;  or.  if  there 
are  lands  upon  which  it  would  be  hazardous  to  apply  it  in 
lar«ze  quantities  at  first,  we  may  be  assured  that  it  will  be 
sale,  always,  provided  it  is  mixed  with  much  organic  mat- 
ter. The  prior  mixture  and  incorporation  of  the  materials 
with  leaves,  bark,  decayed  wood,  rich  loam,  peat,  &c. 
obviates  the  objection  raised.  The  practice  in  New  Jersey 
is  regarded  as  the  best : — namely,  the  prior  mixing  of  marl 
and  vegetables.  It  is  true  that  the  Jersey  marl  is  destitute 
of  I. me.  Probably  the  great  danger  of  bringing  the  use  of 
marl  into  disrepute,  by  representing  its  injurious  effects 
upo .1  poor  soils,  has  more  frequently  arisen  from  too  high 
expectation  of  receiving  great  effects  the  firs*  season  that 
it  is  applied  : — whereas,  the  better  and  safer  course  is  to 
bring  the  land  back  gradually  to  a  good  standard  of  fertility  ; 
pursuing  that  course  which  is  calculated  to  increase  the 
vegetable  matter  in  the  soil  for  several  successive  seasons. 
A  plan  like  the  following  is  deserving  of  trial  :  Spread 
upon  an  acre  seventy-five  bushels  of  the  fifty  per  cent, 
marl,  and  put  it  down  in  peas.  When  in  blossom,  plough 
in  the  crop,  and  sow  rye  or  millet  for  the  succeeding  crop. 
The  land  will  have  gained  a  sufficient  amount  of  organic 
or  vegetable  matter  to  admit  of  the  use  of  ORC  hundred 
and  fifty  or  two  hundred  bushels  at  the  next  marling  time. 
Some  laud  will  require  the  loss  of  twc  crops,  perhaps,  be- 


46 

fore  they  can  be  treated  with  a  fresh  dose  of  marl.  The 
doctrine  to  be  inculcated  is,  to  exercise  patience  with  light 
and  worn  out  soils,  and  not  expect  too  much  at  first,  when 
the  first  step  towards  their  fertilization  is  taken.  When 
the  work  has  been  properly  conducted,  the  planter  may 
regard  such  lands  as  so  much  added  to  his  possessions,  of 
durable  and  productive  fields. 

Abundance  of  the  shelly  marl  lies  in  the  bank  about  one 
half  a  mile,  probably  less,  below  Elizabeth.  It  forms  a 
stratum  from  two  to  three  feet  thick,  in  the  bank  upon  the 
south  side  of  the  river.  Coprolites  and  teeth  of  fish  are 
common.  The  latter  are  mixed  in  the  bed  with  the  shells, 
more  or  less.  Both  teeth  and  coprolites  lie  at  *he  bottom 
of  the  structure,  intermixed  with  some  bones,  and  rounded 
pebbles  of  quartz.  This  layer  at  the  bottom,  intermixed 
with  pebbles  and  rolled  coprolites,  is  an  interesting  feature 
of  the  bed.  I  have  been  in  hopes  that  in  this  position,  in 
some  favored  place,  coprolites,  in  sufficient  quantity,  might 
be  discovered,  to  pay  the  expense  of  extracting  them  sepa- 
rately. They  possess  a  composition  superior  to  bones,  and 
mav  be  used  for  the  same  purposes  as  bones. 

The  following  results  of  an  analysis  represent,  in  the 
main,  their  composition  : — 

Silica,  9.68    . 

Phosphate  of  lime,  71.59 

Carbonate  of  lime,  11.28 

Magnesia,  .50 

Potash,  a  trace 

Organic  matter  and  water,  4.40 

97.35 

The  coprolites  of  this  bed  are  all  black,  or  dark  brown. 
They  are  quite  hard,  and  may  easily  be  mistaken  for  the 
dark  pebbles  of  quartz,  with  which  they  are  associated. 
They  are  generally  broken,  and  are  rounded;  but  some 
retain  their  original  spiral  form.  Trny  are  two  and  a  half 
to  three  inches  long,  and  three-fourths  of  an  inch  in 
diameter. 


47 

§  17  Below  Elizabeth  in  Bladen  county,  the  marlscontinue 
to  be  exposed  at  intervals.  One  of  these  exposures  is  Wal- 
ker's bluff",  nine  miles  below  Elizabeth.  It  is  the  highest 
upon  the  river.  It  presents  a  steep  escarpment,  which 
consists  of  different  colored  sands,  with  a  thick  layer  of 
shelly  marl.  The  marl  is  also  more  or  less  sandy. 
Eighteen  miles  below  Elizabeth,  the  bluffs  appear  upon  the 
river,  with  their  strata  of  sands  and  marls.  The  strata  are 
also  well  exposed  at  Mr.  Robinson's  plantation,  one  mile 
above  Mr.  Brown's  landing.  The  following  strata  appear 
in  the  banks  at  Robinson's,  beginning  at  the  top  :  L,  twenty 
feet  of  d'fferent  colored  sands,  some  yellow,  brown  and 
viiite;  2.  twenty  feet  of  olue  marl,  more  or  Lss  &andy,  and 
calcareous  at  the  bottom  ;  3,  a  single  layer  oi  blue  compact 
clay,  8  inches ;  4,  sand  ;  5,  yellow  and  brown  sands  :  6, 
blue  marl,  containing  a  single  species  of  ostrea.  Most  o( 
this  stratum  is  below  water,  and  hence  its  thickness  is  not 
^terminable  by  inspection.  The  marl  bed  is  very  thick, 
but  contains  considerable  sand  in  its  superior  part;  yet  it  is 
found  a  valuable  fertilizer. 

The  marl  stratum,  at  Brown's  landing;  is  three  feet  thick, 
and  contains  many  shells  and  much  green  sand,  in  grains, 
and  seems  to  have  derived  its  materials  from  the  green 
sand  of  the  cretaceous  formation  below.  At  Mr.  McDow- 
ell's, the  green  or  blue  marl  appears  in  a  low  bank,  one 
mile  from  the  river.  Also,  on  the  plantation  of  Messrs 
Andrews.  These  beds  are  peculiar  in  their  geological  re- 
lations, and  merit  a  careful  examination. 

Ten  miles  below  Mr.  Brown's  landing,  at  Black  Hock,  the 
shell  marl  appears  in  the  bank,  but  is  quite  sandy,  and  ap- 
pears as  if  this  stratum  is  discontinued,  and  ceases  at  or  near 
this  place.  It  is  scarcely  more  than  one  foot  in  thickness. 
Immediately  below  it,  the  green  sand  is  well  developed,  and 
it  is  well  characterized  by  its  fossils. 

On  the  road  from  Brown's  landing,  to  Black  Rock,  beds 
of  marl  appear,  which  are  evidently  isolated.  The  facts  all 
go  to  show  that  the  strata  of  shell  marl  never  form  very  ex- 


48 

tensive  beds:  even  that  so  conspicuous  at  Walker's  bluff, 
disappears  suddenly,  and  its  place  is  taken  by  the  different 
colored  sands. 

§18.  The  strata  of  marl,which  I  have  thus  far  spokencf,  are 
composed  of  many  kinds  of  materials,  intermixed  irregular- 
ly with  each  other.  They  possess  many  fossils  in  common, 
but  often  rare  kinds  are  found,  in  one  or  more  of  the  beds, 
which  is  not  generally  distributed.  But  again,  there  are 
many  places  where  the  oyster  shell  is  the  principal  one, 
and  which,  instead  ot  crumbling  in  the  hand,  and  by  its 
own  weight,  are  firm  and  nearly  as  sound  as  those  now 
living  upon  their  beds.  The  value  of  oysters,  in  this  con- 
dition, is  lar  less  for  immediate  use,  than  those  which  are 
decomposed  :  indeed,  for  spreading  upon  the  soil,  the  prin- 
cipal effect  must  be  mechanical.  If,  however,  five  hundred 
bushel?  were  used  per  aero,  good  effects  might  be  expect- 
ed ;  for  there  is  a  slow  disintegration,  and  there  is  a  slow 
solvent  action,  also,  by  which  lime  will  be  given  to  the 
soil.  Of  this  character,  are  those  shell  banks  immediately 
upon  the  coast.  These,  though  they  have  been  exposed  to 
atmospheric  agencies  for  a  much  less  time  than  those  in 
the  interior,  are,  nevertheless,  farther  advanced  in  the  pro- 
cess of  decay.  The  best  method  of  employing  the  unde- 
composed  shells,  will  be  to  burn  them;  use  the  quicklime, 
or  after  it  has  passed  into  a  sub-caustic  state. 

§  19  The  Neuse  valley  is  deeper  and  lower  than  the 
Cape  Fear,  and  hence  it  furnishes  a  larger  supply  of  Mar! 
beds.  The  Chapony  Hills  have  been  known  for  a  quarter 
ot  a  century,  to  be  rich  in  marls  of  different  kinds  The 
vicinity  of  Goldsboro/  however,  possesses  most  distincily 
the  characters  of  those  upon  Cape  Fear.  The  beds  which 
are  best  known  are  upon  the  plantation  of  Messrs.  Scott, 
Ham  and  Peacock.  The  beds  are  identical  in  age  and  po- 
sition, and  belong  the  middle  tertiary;  they  are  from 
twelve  to  fifteen  feet  thick.  These  shells  are  embedded  *n 
a  green  marly  clay,  which  effervesces  with  acids.  Mr. 


49 


Ham's  marl  is  filled  with  small  shells,  which  have  so  far 
decayed  that  it  is  difficult  to  find  one  entire.  The  cover- 
ing to  the  different  beds  is  quite  varied.  Mr.  Ham's  has 
three  feet  of  peat,  which  is  probably  the  best  substance, 
considered  economically,  which  could  have  been  placed 
there ;  it  is  the  very  material  wanted  to  secure  the  best  ef- 
fects of  the  marl,  and  to  form  with  it  a  compost.  It  is  not 
determined  what  strata  lies  below  these  beds,  occupying,  as 
they  do,  grounds  which  are  low  and  depressed.  The  marl 
of  Mr.  Ham's  may  be  regarded  as  composed  of — 

Sand  or  Silex,  45.60 
Phosphate  of  lime,  per  oxyde  of 

iron  and  alumina,  8.25 

Carbonate  of  lime,  44.15 

Water  and  organic  matter,  1.60 

99.60 

The  marls,  previous  to  analysis,  have  become  dry  by  ex- 
posure to  the  air.  Some  moisture  and  organic  matter  re- 
mains, varying  from  one  to  three  and  four  per  cent.  The 
sanies  always  greater  than  appears  from  simple  inspection, 
and  it  ^isually  consists  of  fine  grains  of  pure  quartz.  There 
is  also,  one-half  of  one  per  cer.t.  of  soluble  silica,  which  is  usu- 
ally omitted. 

§  19.  It  will  be  observed,  that  in  making  up  a  statement 
of  the  analysis,  I  place  the  ammoniacal  precipitate,  the  oxyde 
of  iron  and  alumina,  under  the  head  of  phosphate  of  lime, 
instead  of  placing  it  in  analysis  under  the  head  of  alumi- 
na and  per  oxyde  of  iron.  I  have  done  this,  because  this 
precipitate  consists  mainly  of  phosphates,  though  the  exact 
amount  of  phosphoric  acid  has  not  been  fixed  with  accura- 
cy ;  yet,  one-fourth  of  a  grain  of  it  gives  a  strong  rendition 
of  phosphoric  acid  with  molybdate  of  ammonia. 

On  the  banks  of  the  Sarpony  hills,  on  Mr.  Griswold's 
plantation,  marl  of  an  excellent  quality,  and  in  great  obun- 

4 


dance,  exists.  The  beds,  however,  are  indurated,  or  have- 
passed  into  that  condition  which  is  known  as  stone  mar}. 
The  following  is  a  correct  description  of  a  section  of  a 
slope  or  bank,  where  excavations  have  been  made  for  pro- 
curing limestone  ;  beginning  at  the  water's  edge  : 

1.  Stratum  of  marl  extending  beneath  the  water  of  the 
Neuse,  in  a  soft  condition.. 

2.  Consolidated  marl. 

3.  Sandy  marl. 

4.  Granular  and  partially  indurated  marl. 

5.  Stone  marl  fifteen  feet  thick,  and  which  has  been 
used  for  lime. 

6.  Sand. 

The  whole  bank  has  a  thickness  of  thirty  or  thirty-five 
feet.  It  is  one  of  the  best  locations  on  the  river  for  the 
manufacture  of  lime  for  agricultural  purposes,  and  it  is  not 
a  little  remarkable,  that  property,  which  might  have  been 
very  valuable,  and  at  the  same  time  useful,  to  a  whole  com- 
munity, has  been  lying  useless  and  unproductive. 

§  20.  At  the  Sarpony  BluffJ  the  formation  present^  an 
interesting  section  to  the  Geologist.  It  would  be  expected 
that  the  marl  would  appear  here,  as  at  Walker's  Bluff,  on 
the  Cape  Fear;  inasmuch  as  the  height  and  formations  do- 
not  materially  differ.  The  Sarpony  Bluff  is  between  75 
and  80  feet  high,  and  consists  of  the  following  strata: 

1.  Sand  extending  beneath  the  water,  4  feet. 

2.  Band  of  pebbles  and  sand,  cemented  by  iron,  with 

casts  of  obscure  vegetable  stems,  five  feet. 

3.  Gray  sand,  thirty  feet. 

4.  Ferruginous  band,  eight  feet, 

5.  Light  colored  ferruginous  layer. 

C,  Copperas  beds,  consisting  of  pyrites,  clay  and  vege- 
table matter,  nearly  black.  It  is  properly  a  bed  of 
lignite,  charged  with  pyrites. 


51 


7.  Sand,  twenty-five  feet. 

8.  Earth,  sand,  &c.  compacted  together. 

These  beds,  it  will  be  observed,  are  mostly  ferruginous, 
or  those  which  are  highly  charged  with  the  oxyde  of  iron  ; 
and  it  should  be  observed,  that,  where  iron  is  thus  in  ex- 
cess, the  beds  do  not  furnish  animal  remains,  or  marl  beds. 
Fossils  are  rarely  distributed  in  them  ; — sulphuret  of  iron  is 
usually  the  source  of  the  oxyde,  in  beds  of  this  description, 
and,  in  decomposing,  forms  an  astringent  salt  of  protosul- 
phate  of  iron  or  copperas.  The  marl  of  Griswold's  plan- 
tation thins  out  before  it  reaches  this,  high  bluff ;  a  change 
which  occurs  also  on  the  Cape  Fear,  where  the  marl  sud- 
denly disappears,  being  replaced  by  sand. 

$  21.  The  vicinity  of  Newbern  has  long  been  known  as 
abounding  in  marl.  New  beds  ale  frequently  brought  to 
light  by  accident,  and  sometimes  by  careful  exploration  of 
favorable  places.  Judge  Donnell,  during  the  past  year,  has 
discovered  shelly  marl  upon  an  old  plantation  ; — proving 
that  most  plantations,  which  are  elevated  considerably  above 
the  river,  are  not  destitute  of  this  fertilizer. 

§  22.  The  Tau  river,  in  its  banks  and  branches,  is  rich 
in  marls  of  the  age  of  the  middle  tertiary,  adopting  the 
views  of  the  Geologists  who  have  examined,  with  some 
care,  the  fossils  peculiar  to  these  beds. 

$  23.  Beginning  in  Nash,  County,  five  or  six  miles  above 
Rocky  Mount,  we  find  the  shelly  marl  at  intervals  as  far 
down  as  Washington. 

The  first  I  shall  notice  is  from  Mr.  McDaniel's,  5  or  6 
miles  above  Rocky  Mount.  This  marl,  like  many  other 
kinds  whose  quality  is  equal  to  the  average,  is  more  or  less 
consolidated,  and  breaks  up  into  masses.  Thin  lamince 
of  coal,  or  lignite,  are  mixed  with  the  shells— a  fact  which 
indicates  that  the  source  of  the  earthy  material  was  in  the- 


coal  formation,  in  part.  This  marl  is  regarded  as  consist- 
ing of  the  two  kinds : — ihe  brown  or  red,  and  the  blue. 
Practically,  I  think  it  well  to  keep  up  this  distinction  ;  for 
the  red,  thus  far,  has  given  better  results  in  analysis  than 
the  blue.  I  do  not  know  what  opinions  are  entertained  by 
planters  of  their  comparative  value,  who  use  both  kinds. 

The  analysis  of  two  specimens  of  this  marl  gives  very 
good  results  for  the  red  variety  : 

Silex,  or  sand,  16.25 

Phosphate  of  lime  and  per  oxydeofiron,  10.00 

Carbonate  of  lime,  71.75 

Organic  matter  and  water,  2.15 

100.15 

The  magnesia  and  potash  were  not  sought  for. 

The  appearance  of  this  marl  is  quite  unpromising,  as  it 
is  quite  bumpy  and  hard,  passing  into  an  indurated  marl. 
Still,  analysis  shows  it  to  be  an  excellent  kind,  and  which, 
I  am  confident,  would  yield  7  or  8  per  cent,  of  phosphates, 
over  and  above  the  alumina. 

The  blue  marl  which  is  found  below,  gives  a  good 
analysis,  but  contains  less  lime  : 

Sand,  or  silex,  21.25 

Phosphate  of  lime,  and  per  oxyde  of 

iron  and  alumina,  10.00 

Carbonate  of  lime,  64.65 

Organic  matter  and  water,  2.10 

98.00 

These  marls,  when  tested,  have  always  furnished  a  small 
quantity  of  magnesia,  and  a  trace,  and  sometimes  a  weigh- 
able  quantity,  of  potash.  The  two  samples  furnish  the 
same  amount  of  the  phosphates,  and  oxyde  of  iron.  The 
color  of  the  ammoniacal  precipitate  is  darker  in  the  red, 
than  in  the  green  variety,  indicating  a  larger  quantity  of  the 
oxyde  of  iron. 


53 

This  bed,  which  furnished  the  foregoing  samples  of  marl 
for  analysis,  is  the  highest  known  to  me  upon  the  Tan 
River.  This  fact,  however,  does  not  prove  its  non-exist- 
ence still  farther ;  and  I  predict  that  careful  examination 
will  reward  the  planters  in  that  county,  with  many  addi- 
tional beds.  Every  bed  must  be  regarded  as  a  prize,  if  it 
is  limited  to  50  loads. 

§  24  The  reputation  of  marl,  as  a  fertilizer,  in  Edge- 
combe  County,  has  led  most  of  the  planters  to  search  for 
i.  upon  their  premises.  Probably  there  is  no  better  proof 
of  the  value  of  this  substance  than  is  furnished  by  the  esti- 
mation in  which  it  is  held  by  its  citizens.  Regarded,  in 
years  which  are  past,  as  a  county  somewhat  behind  the 
times  in  literature  and  science,  she  has,  nevertheless,  out- 
stripped all  other  counties  in  the  application  of  good  sense 
and  common  sense  to  her  farming  interests.  Facts  are 
sometimes  misunderstood,  as  well  as  misrepresented  abroad, 
when  applied  to  the  internal  policy  of  a  State.  So,  I  sup- 
pose, Edgecombe  has  been  misunderstood; — for  agricultur- 
al improvements  are  incompatible  with  ignorance  and  dark- 
ness. If  we  find  a  people  alive  to  their  internal  interests, 
so  vital  as  agriculture,  we  may  be  sure  that  mind  has  been 
at  work.  But,  however  this  may  be,  Edgecombe  has  the 
reputation  of  being  the  first  county  in  its  agricultural  im- 
provements and  agricultural  prosperity.  Her  success  has 
been  secured  chiefly  by  her  marl  beds  ;  it  would  have  been 
secured,  in  the  end,  if  marl  had  not  existed  ;  but  more  time 
and  capital  would  have  been  required  to  have  placed  her  in 
her  present  enviable  position. 

Although  the  foregoing  remarks  may  be  regarded  as  out 
of  place  and  uncalled  for,,  yet  I  deemed  if.  right  to  give  cre- 
dit where  it  was  so  justly  due ;  without  at  all  questioning 
the  ability  of  her  neighbors  to  compete  successlully  with 
her  for  the  next  five  years. 

There  is  another  fact  worth  recording: — Edgecombe  has 
many  men  who  have  been  educated  at  her  excellent  Uni- 


54 


versity,  who  regard  agriculture  a  befitting  profession  for 
an  educated  man— an  example  which  the  friends  of  agri- 
culture will  be  pleased  to  see  imitated  in  other  parts  of 
this  Republic. 

§  25.  The  Marl  beds  at  Rocky  Mount  belong  to  the 
same  age  as  the  preceding.  They  are  the  blue  shelly  bed* 
frequently  furnishing  that  large  scollop  or  feature,  which  is 
regarded  as  characteristic  of  the  middle  tertiary.  The  ap- 
pearance of  granite  and  sienite  at  Rocky  Mount,  has  pro- 
duced a  series  of  falls  in  the  Tau  river ;  and  sometimes  the 
marl  is  found  resting  immediately  upon  those  pyro-crystal- 
line  rocks.  The  beds  are  associated  with  the  following 
strata : 

1.  Above  the  marl,   stratum  of  sand  and  rounded  peb- 
bles, which  is  ten  feet  thick. 

2.  Marl  somewhat  sandy,  but  impervious  to  water,  and 
hence,  the  surface  water  percolates  through  the  upper 
mass  and  is   thrown  out  by  the  marl.     The  upper  is 
made  up  of  fine  or  small  shells,  like  that  of  Mr.  Ham's 

'  of  Goldsboro'.     The  lower   is   intermixed    with    the 
large  scollops  and  clams — (  Venus  difformis.) 

The  marl,  like  that  of  other  beds,  is  rich  in  lime,  and  of- 
ten consolidated  or  cemented  in  different  parts  of  the  struc- 
ture. The  whole  thickness  of  the  shelly  strata  is  seven 
feet.  The  marl  is  sometimes  charged  with  rounded  peb- 
bles of  different  sizes.  The  position  of  the  marl  is  upon 
the  banks  of  the  Tau  ;  several  beds  appearing  in  the  banks 
near  the  falls,  or  at  one-half,  and  also,  about  one  mile,  below 
the  railroad  bridge.  There  are  points  where  excavations 
have  been  made,  but  it  is  probably  continuous  for  nearly  a 
mile.  Whenever  there  is  an  undulation  by  which  the 
strata  are  elevated  even  a  few  feet,  there  the  marl  appears 
in  the  banks.  Rounded  stone  and  pebbles  are  strewed  over 
.  the  surface  in  great  abundance,  but  this  fact  is  no  indication 


that  currents  have  swept  over  the  country  in  a  certain  di- 
rection. Some  oi  the  soil  at  Rocky  Mount  is  light  and  re- 
quires the  application  of  marl  to  give  it  more  retentiveness, 
as  well  as  to  furnish  a  fertilizer  to  supply  the  waste  to  which 
the  lands  have  been  subjected. 

The  marl  strata  reappear  at  Tarhoro',  at  many  points  ; 
sometimes  on  the  river  banks,  and  sometimes  in  the  banks 
of  creeks.  One  of  the  important  beds  is  near  the  vil- 
lage, and  belongs  to  Mr.  Bullock. 

The  section  which  contains  the  marl,  is  made  up  of — 

1.  Sand  which  extends  below  the  water  of  the  creek. 

2.  Clay  with  lignite,  three  or  four  feet. 
.  3.  Marl,  seven  or  eight  feet. 

4.  Sand  and  clay  without  fossil,  or  only  a  few  casts. 

5.  Sand,  gravel  and  soil. 

The  marl  is  intermixed  with  coprolites,  a  few  bones,  and 
water- worn  pebbles — mostly  at  the  bottom  of  the  bed.  There 
is  the  same  tendency  to  consolidation  as  at  Rocky  Mount, 
and  at  other  places  on  the  Neuse  and  Cape  Fear  rivers:  The 
same  shells,  consisting  of  large  pectens,  (Pecten  Madiso. 
nius,)  Venus  Difformis,  and  two  or  three  species  of  Pec- 
tunculus.  Masses  of  sulphuret  of  iron  are  not  uncommon. 

The  marl  of  this  bed  is  composed  of — 

Sand  or  silex,  56.25 

Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxide  of  iron 

and  alumina, 
Carbonate  of  iron, 
Organic  matter  and  water, 
^Magnesia, 

10056 
Mr.  Bridge*  Marl. 

It  will  be  observed,  that  rather  more  than  one-half  must 
be  set  down  as  useless  matter.     The  analysis  was  made  of 


56 


that  portion  containing  the  small  bivalve  shells,  and  as 
many  of  the  shells  are  rejected  as  convenient  ;  there  will, 
therefore,  be  more  lime  than  is  given  in  the  analysis,  by 
three  or  four  per  cent.  It  is,  perhaps,  unnecessary,  to  re- 
mark, that  the  finer  the  material  the  better;  that  the  marl 
with  small  bivalves,  is  better  than  the  marl  with  large  ones. 
The  latter  when  abundant  is  better  for  quick  lime. 

Mr.  Knight's  mail  bed  is  three  miles  from  the  village, 
and  has  been  extensively  employed  in  marling :  It  is  upon 
the  banks  of  the  Tau. 

I  obtained  the  following  section  of  its  beds  : 

1.  Sand  and  gravel  at  ihe  river's  edge. 

2.  Sandy  marl. 

3.  Marl  with  shell,  six  feet. 

4.  Greenish   or   blue  clay,   six  feet,  containing  casts  of 
shells  only. 

5.  Sand. 

The  whole  thickness  is  about  thirty  feet. 

This  bed  has  furnished  many  large  bones,  both  of  Saurians 
and  land  quadruped,  principally  of  the  Mastodon.  This 
bed  has  been  regarded  as  equal  to  the  best  of  the  varieties 
of  shell  marl.  Sand  seems  to  be  a  constant  associate  of 
the  marls.  It  occurs  both  above  and  below  the  stratum 
of  shells.  In  this  respect  there  is  a  general  uniformity  in 
the  marl  deposits  in  the  different  vallies — the  Cape  Fear, 
tht  Neuse,  and  the  Tau.  The  intermixture  of  sand  is  the 
material  which  diminishes  or  changes  this  value.  Though 
coarse  shells,  as  the  large  scollops  and  clams,  together  with 
certain  species  of  oyster,  constitute  a  poor  kind  of  marl — 
these  resist  for  a  long  time  the  action  of  the  weather. — 
Where  these  have  abounded,  I  have  heard  unfavorable  re- 
ports of  the  effects  upon  the  soil ; — or,  at  least,  the  good 
and  advantage  expected  were  not  realized.  This  all  goes 
to  show  the  importance  of  a  comminution  of  the  material : 


57 


it  favors  solubility.  Those  agents,  as  water  and  carbonic 
acid,  act  with  more  energy,  and  the  power  oi  absorption  is 
increased  in  the  substances  themselves. 

£ 
§  2f.  Where  the  coarser  marls  are  necessarily  employed, 

the  advantages  of  a  crusher  is  obvious.  Plaster  is  opera- 
tive immediately,  because  it  is  ground  fine  ;  if  it  were  more 
in  the  condition  of  coarse  shot,  its  effects  would  not  be  ap- 
parent on  most  of  soils.  The  subject  of  comminution  is 
one  of  considerable  interest  in  husbandry.  It  is  not  expec- 
ted, however,  that  soils  can  be  ground  or  comminuted,  ex- 
cept  through  and  by  the  action  o^ he  weather.  The  marls 
which  are  coarse,  however,  when  made  into  composts,  will 
be  improved  materially,  especially  when  these  composts  are 
composed  of  organic  matter,  which  liberates  carbonic  acid. 
Frequent  stirring  is  also  important.  Another  mode  is  by 
the  application  of  marl.  Exfoliation  of  the  large  shells 
beo-iiis  at  once ;  the  loss  of  organic  matter  is  replaced  by 
water,  and  the  whole  becomes  porous.  One  fact  worthy  of 
notice,  is,  that  mixtures  are  always  more  valuable  than  sim- 
ple bodies ;  even  phosphate  of  lime  is  more  active  and  ben- 
eficial  when  intermixed  with  materials  constituting  acorn- 
post,  or  intermingled  with  a  compost.  The  constitution  of 
man  and  animals  requires  mixture.  We  have  seen  that  the 
soil  is  eminently  a  compound  mass;  and  when  food  is  taken 
into  the  stomach,  there  are  agents  which  assist  its  recep- 
tion in  large  quantities  into  the  system.  So  long  as  we 
have  regard  to  the  necessities  of  plants,  we  can  hardly  form 
a  mass  of  compost,  too  complex  in  its  constitution,  or  which 
shall  consist  of  too  many  elements,  and  I  think  it  highly- 
probable  that  many  failures  have  arisen  from  neglecting  the 

aid  to  be  derived  from  intermixture. 

' 
§  26.  The  marl  of  Mr.  Bullock's,  near  Tarboro',  and  upon 

his    home   plantation,  has    been   fairly  tested,  and  proves 
valuable. 

The  section  of  the  slope  in  which  it  occurs,  is  represen. 
ted  by  the  following  beds,  beginning  with  the  lowest : 


58 


1.  Sand. 

2.  Marl,  with  shells,  scollops,  &c.,  3^-  feet. 

3.  Blue  compact  clay,  which  contains  decomposing  py- 
rites. 

4.  Sand  and  clay,  in  alternating  layers,  mostly  destitute 
of  fossils,  5  feet. 

5.  Sand. 

The  blue  or  greenish  marl  of  Mr.  Bullock's  plantation 
has  the  following  composition  : 

Sand,  34.40 
Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxide  of  iron,        3.20 

Carbonate  of  lime,  54.52 

Magnesia,  1.50 

Potash,  trace. 

Soda,  trace. 

Organic  matter,  4.88 

Water,  1.38 

99.88 

Mr.  Bullock's  plantation  consists  of  rather  more  than 
one  thousand  acres.  It  lies  in  a  great  bend  of  the  Tau 
river.  From  the  river,  to  the  higher  ground,  there  are  four 
distinct  but  low  terraces.  The  average  crop  of  seed  cotton 
is  about  twelve  hundred  pounds.  The  marl  is,  in  part, 
composted  ;  it  is,  however,  allowed  to  be  exposed  to  the 
weather,  and  undergoes  certain  mechanical  as  well  as 
chemical  changes,  prior  to  use.  Probably,  it  is  always  im- 
portant to  give  the  marl  air,  as  it  may  be  termed,  before  it 
is  spread  upon  the  soil,  even  if  no  mechanical  change  is 
effected  by  it. 

Marl,  which  is  a  year  old,  is  much  better  than  when 
taken  from  the  pit,  and  spread  immediately  upon  the  soil, 
especially  if  it  is  turned  over  three  or  four  times  during 
the  year. 


59 


§  23  The  improvements  of  the  Panola  plantation,  under  the 
direct  supervision  of  its  intelligent  proprietors,  Messrs.. 
Norfleet  &  Dancy,  exhibit  something  of  the  spirit  which 
pervades  Edgecornbe.  *  ^ 

The  plantation  was  old,  and  was  purchased  for  $65  per 
acre,  and  consists  of  908  acres,  550  of  which  is  now  under 
cultivation  Its  former  proprietor  had  pursued  the  system 
of  rest  so  common  in  the  South,  without  a  thought  of  pro- 
viding for  the  future,  when  the  most  valuable  parts  of  the 
soil  had  been  converted  into  corn,  cotton  and  bacon,  and 
sold  in  a  distant  market.  Its  new  proprietors,  on  making 
this  purchase,  were  aware  that  the  old  system  could  not  be 
pursued,  and  they  were  well  satisfied  that  the  only  system 
which  could  renovate  the  soil,  though  originally  good, 
was  to  supply  an  abundance  of  fertilizers  or  manures.  The 
plantation  rises  in  three  or  four  terraces  from  the  river,  the 
lowest  of  which  is  often  overflown  with  the  high  water  of 
the  river.  Logs,  flood  wood  and  trash  cover  the  lower 
terrace,  and  occupy  the  low  ravines.  By  a  judicious  ap- 
plication of  the  force  of  only  fcwo  laborers,  three  thousand 
bushels  of  ashes  were  made  in  two  weeks  from  this  refuse 
wood.  In  addition  to  this  important  fertilizer,  twenty 
thousand  loads  of  compost  were  made,  consisting  ol  cotton 
seed,  stable  manure  and  river  sediment,  and  the  m*uck  of 
ditches.  Ample  manures  were  taken  for  draining,  by  a 
free  opening  and  deepening  of  the  old  ditches.  The  main 
body  of  the  land  is  rolling,  the  higher  parts  are  sandy,  and 
the  lower  formed  of  a  clay  loam. 

The  points  worthy  of  notice,  are  the  preparations  for  a 
productive  farming,  and  the  expenditure  of  capital  for  this 
purpose;  and,  although  it  would  seem,  that  the  plantation 
itself  had  furnished  a  large  amount  of  material,  at  a  trifling 
cost,  still,  bones  and  guano  were  also  prepared  at  a  cost  of 
$52  per  ton,  and  bone  dust,  at  fifty  cents  per  bushel,  in 
New  York. 


60 

§29.  The  first  and  important  lesson,  which  the  agricultu- 
rist should  learn,  is,  that  he  must  supply  his  land  with  ma- 
.  nure,  and  if  any  planter  will  calculate  the  cost  of  a  full- 
supply  of  manure,  and  then  the  cost  of  new  clearings, 
required  by  the  old  system  of  husbandry,  he  will  find  it 
cheaper,  and  hence,  more  economical  to  make  atid  buy 
manures,  than  to  clear  up  his  plantation,  for  the  purpose 
of  cultivating  new  lands,  and  those  which  have  been  par- 
tially restored  by  rest.  The  improvements  of  the  Panola 
plantation  do  not  terminate  in  furnishing  an  ample  supply 
of  manures.  The  removal  of  the  cabins  to  an  airy,  healthy 
and  central  position,  is  one  of  the  most  important  improve- 
ments.  The  arrangements,  too,  of  the  out-houses  and 
water  sinks,  so  as  to  save  nitrogenous  matter,  with  their 
phosphates,  is  another  step  in  improvement,  worthy  of  imi- 
tation by  others.  So,  also,  it  is  made  the  special  business 
of  some  one  or  two  laborers,  to  collect  all  matters  which 
may  be  used  as  a  fertilizer.  But  I  need  not  dwell  upon 
other  rninutiaB  of  the  improvements  designed  to  secure,  in 
the  end,  a  profitable  investment  of  capital.  Considered  in 
the  light  of  a  speculation  only,  it  does  not  require  a 
prophet's  vision  to  predict  the  result. 

In  the  foregoing,  remarks,  1  have  had  in  view  the  fact, 
that  information  of  what  others  are  doing  is  one  of  the 
best  stimulants  to  improvement  by  others.  The  most  im- 
portant results  will  be  brought  about  by  the  successful  pro- 
jects of  enterprising  men,  when  they  are  made  known.  It 
is  a  principle  which  applies  to  all  professions. 

Now,  the  season  having  passed,  and  the  crops  been  gather- 
ed and  weighed,  it  turns^out  that  the  cotton  fields  have  yield- 
ed one 'bale  of  cotton,  of  four  hundred  pounds,  to  the  acre, 
which  the  year  before  did  not  amount  to  one  half  of  that, 
and  the  corn  lands,  which,  before  the  improvement,  would 
not  and  did  not  yield  three  barrels  to  the  acre,  have  yielded, 
this  year,  eight:  a  well  marked  and  decided  improvement. 
The  season,  it  is  true,  has  been  favorable,  and  it  should  be 
noticed  in  making  up  the  results. 


61 


§  30  I  have  one  more  remark  to  make  in  this  connexion  :  it 
relates  to  the  effect  on  the  product,  when  high  cultivation 
is  resorted  to.  This  effect  is  ot'  the  highest  consequence, 
and  it  does  not  end  with  a  simple  increase  of  product,  but 
also  in  a  product  of  a  better  quality.  We  probably,  how- 
ever, understand  the  mode  of  increasing  a  production,  bet- 
ter than  giving  it  a  superior  quality.  The  lint  of  cotton  is 
better,  if  produced  byjiigh  cultivation,  than  by  an  indiffe- 
rent cultivation.  Tn(iian_rftrn  is  better,  when  the  land  is 
supplied  sufficiently  with  its  proper  food.  It  is  light,  if  it 
lacks  food  in  the  soil.  Wheat  is  heavier,  by  three  or  four 
pounds  to"  the  bushel,  if  grown  on  a  rich  soil.  Barley  is 
sold  by  weight,  for  different;soils  produce  a  grain  lighter  and 
more  chaffy  than  others.  Oats  vary  much  in  their  weight, 
by  being  grown  on  soils  differing  in  their  fertility. 

New  lands  are  productive,  and  at  the  same  time  give  a 
superior  quality  of  grain.  Oil  old  lands,  there  is  a  dimi- 
nution of  weight,  and  a  loss  in  the  quality  of  the  product  : 
there  is  more  offal.  Attention  should  be  given,  then,  to 
the  quality  of  the  cotton,  as  well  as  to  the  quantity.  The 
planter  may  control,  in  a  manner^  both  results,  or,  in  other 
words,  he  may  modify  results,  by  cultivation.  It  is  well 
known  that  cotton  requires,  a  stiffer  soil  than  corn.  The 
principles  involved  in  a  cultivation  of  these  two  staples  of 
the  South,  are  not  the  snme.  The  object,  in  the  cultivation 
of  t»tii«Q:^BWi,  is  the  development  of  cellular  tissue.  I  do 
not  yet  know  the  precise  modes  by  which  we  can  apply 
principles  successfully  to  practice.  Yet,  the  cellular  tis- 
sue requires,  for  its  development,  more  carbonate  of  lime 
than  phosphate  of  lime.  Analysis  of  the  different  tissues 
proves  this.  If  this  is  true,  it  is  an  indication  that  the 
marls  are  adapted,  especially,  to  the  growth  of  cotton;  that 
while  it  contains  some  phosphate  of  lime,  as  this  is  neces- 
sary to  all  tissues,  yet  the  lime  in  the  cellular  tissue  is  fur- 
nished, originally,  from  the  carbonate. 


Experiments  might  be  devised  for  testing  the  truth  of 
these  views  ; — the  object  being  to  increase  the  lint,  and 
improve  its  quality.  Has  any  attention  been  given  to  the 
selection  of  seed  ?-— -selecting  from  the  field  the  seed  which 
has  first  ripened,  and  which  has  given  the  longest,  finest, 
and  most  silky  staple  ? 

The  marl  beds  of  the  Tau  River  are  exposed  at  points 
below  Tarboro',  from  Greenville  to  Washington. 

§  31.  At  Greenville  they  have  been  successfully  used — 
it  belongs  to  the  middle  tertiary.  Just  below  Sparta,  the 
left  bank  is  thirty  ieet  high,  and  there  is  exposed  a  remark- 
able stratum  of  marl.  Above  Sparta,  the  bank  is  too  low 
to  expose  it. 

In  the  vicinity  of  Greenville,  the  marl  beds  are  numerous, 
Mr.  Brown's  bed  exhibits  the  .following  strata  : — 

1.  Sand  exposed  at  the  bottom. 

2.  Two  feet  of  sandy  clay. 

3.  Three  inches  of  yellow  sand. 

4.  Eight  feet  of  shell  marl,  with  greer.ish  grains, 

5.  Sand,  with  sandy  clay,  of  a.  green  color. 

Mr.  Britton/s  marl  exhibits  a  section  quite  similar  to  the- 
above : — 

1.  Green  indurated  sand. 

2.  Marl,  six  to  seven  feet  thick. 

3.  Sandy  Marl,  one  loot. 

4.  Brick  clay,  four  or  five  feet  thick. 

5.  Sand. 

This  marl  is  reddish,  and  operates  favorably  and  quickly. 
The  stratum  of  clay  occupying  this  position  is  not  uncom- 


63      . 

mon.  In  fact,  it  is  almost  co  ntinuous  over  the  whole 
country,  though  it  is  not  always  present  as  a  covering  to 
the  marl. 

A  bed  on  the  plantation  of  Mr.  Boyd,  in  the  same  neigh- 
borhood, is  about  fifteen  feet  thick  :  it  is  overlaid  by  a 
band  of  yellow  clay,  upon  which  there  is  sand  five  feet 
thick. 

§  32.  Six  miles  below  Greenville  is  Dr.  Dixon's  marl 
bed,  which  had  just  been  opened  at  the  time  of  my  visit. 
It  is  blue  shelly  marl ;  most  of  the  shells  are  small;  and  the 
mass  is  much  disintegrated. 

t  The  strata  lie  in  the  following  order  : — 

1.  Marl  15  feet  thick — its  bottom  not  certainly  exposed. 

2.  Blue  clay,  3  inches. 

3-  White  loose  sand,  differing  but  little  from  drifting 
sand. 

This  marl  is  composed  of  the  following  proportions  in- 
fifty  grains :— - 

Sand,  15.70 

Carbonate  of  lime,  27.30 
Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxyde  of  iron,       1,60 

Water,  1.69 

Magnesia,  .11 

Potash,  trace* 

Organic  matter,  2.94 

49.34 

In  the  ba^ks  of  the  Tau,  at  Greenville,  numerous  flat- 
tened  masses  are  washed  out  of  the  bank.  The  color  is  a 
drab,  or  light  yellowish  brown.  They  are  frequently  per- 
forated by  a  round  hole  ;  they  have  a  close  resemblance  to 
the  ordinary  clay  stones.  Coprolites  are  associated  with 
them  :  and  I  was  inclined  to  regard  them,  all  as  coprolites  : 


but  it  proved  that  many  of  the  flattened  bodies  are  not 
.  coprolites.     Analysis  of  one  of   them  g-ive  the  following 
results  : — 

Insoluble  matter,  .13 

Phosphate  of  lime,  14.50 

Carbonate  of  lime,  10.50 

Magnesia*  trace. 

24.13 

The  coprolites  have  always  given  potash,  when  tests  are 
applied.  These  substances  in  the  Greenville  beds  are  soft} 
and  unlike  coprolites  which  occur  on  the  Cape  Fear  rivei. 
They  are  unlike  them  in  color  and  form*.  Most  of  them 
are,  in  their  flattened  cakes,  not  much  unlike  a  cracker  in 
form;  though,  in  this  respect,  there  is  much  diversity. 

The  country  around  Washington  is  too  low  to  give  good 
exposures  of  shell  marl.  It  is,  however,  common  in  the 
low  banks,  but  liable  to  be  overflowed. 

§  33.  Mr. -Myers*  marl  bed  gives  the  following  section  : 

1.  Blue  marl. 

2.  Shelly  marl,  3  feet. 
&  Red  marl,  8  inches. 

4.  Brick  clay, 

5.  Sand. 

Another  bed,  upon  the  plantation  of  the  Sheriff  of  the 
County,  was  too  much  concealed  by  water  at  the  time  of 
my  visit.  A  specimen  of  the  marl  furnished  Tor  analysis 
gave  the  following  proportions  : 

Water,  1.40 

Organic  matter,  2.70 


*         65 

Sand,  28.30 

Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxyde  of  iron,  5.13 

Lime,  10.81 

Magnesia,  .11 

48.45 

The  analysis  contains  less  lime  than  was  expected.  The 
shelly  portions  were  .rejected  in  part ;  which,  had  they  been 
included,  would  have  given  a  larg  r  per  centage  of  lime. 
The  effects,  as  they  have  appeared  upon  trial,  were  remark- 
ably good  and  satisfactory.  The  absence  of  high  banks  in- 
creases the  Libor  and  expense  of  raising  the  marl. 

I  took  occasion  to  visit  Jones  County,  on  my  return 
from  the  examination  of  the  State  lands  in  Carteret.  The 
Hon.  Mr.  Donnell,  of  Newbern,  accompanied  me,  and  laid 
me  under  many  obligations  for  the  information  received  of  the 
country. 

This  County  has  an  undulating  surface  ;  the  soil  has  more 
clay  than  Edgecombe  or  Pitt.  The  foundation  for  the  high- 
est improvement  in  agiiculture  exists  in  its  soil.  Less  cotton 
is  cultivated  than  in  Edgecombe  ;  but,  when  cultivated,  it  is 
not  difficult  to  raise  it  up  to  sixteen  hundred  pounds  of  seed 
cotfon  per  acre.  Marl  of  a  peculiai  kind  exists  in  the  waters 
of  Rainbow  Creek,  and  on  the  banks  of  Miller's  Creek. 
The  marl  is  formed  of  the  debris  of  exceeding  large  oyster 
shells,  some  of  which  are  14  inches  long,  and  l^  inches  thick. 
They  sometimes  weigh  6  and  7  pounds.  The  surface  shells 
are  decomposing  ;  those  deep  in  the  beds  are  quite  sound. 
The  marl,  however,  of  these  beds,  is  less  valuable  than  when 
composed  of  small  shells.  The  testimony  of  those  who  have 
been  acquainted  with  its  use  is  of  a  negative  kind  ;  but  still 
I  could  not  learn  all  the  circumstances  attending  its  applica- 
tion. At  Pollocksville,  on  the  Trent,  this  marl  appears  in 
its  banks,  and  presents  the  following  section  : — 

5 


1.  Sand. 

2.  Oyster  bed. 

3.  Sand. 

4.  Oyster  bed. 

5.  Sand. 

It  is  about  20  feet  to  the  second  bed  of  oysters.  Beneath 
these  beds  is  the  lime  rock  of  the  country,  consisting  of  con- 
solidated marl,  having  the  same  characters  as  that  upon  the 
Trent  near  Newbern.  In  many  places,  its  purity  is  such 
that  it  makes  a  good  lime  ;  in  others  it  is  iandy,  and  makes 
a  weak  lime. 

§  34.  The  marl  of  Little  Oontentney  Creek  possesses  the 
same  characteristics  as  that  of  the  Tau  and  Neuse. 

For  the  opportunity  for  making  the  examination  of  Little 
Contentney,  Tossnot,  and  a  part  of  Nash  County,  I  am  in- 
debted to  the  kindness  of  Mr.  Myers,  of  Washington,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Greenville  and  Raleigh  Plank  Road. 

The  marl  upon  the  plantation  of  Mr.  Streeter  was  too 
much  concealed  by  water  to  admit  only  a  slight  examination. 
The  fossils,  however,  proved  the  deposits  to  be  of  the  middle 
tertiary.  The  large  Pectunculus  and  Venus  difformis,  com- 
mon at  otjier  places,  were  observed  among  other  common 
fossils  «f  the  formation. 

The  beds  upon  the  plantation  of  Mr.  May  were  also  cover- 
ed with  water.  These,  in  part,  were  sandy,  and  a  specimen 
gave  only  a  small  per  centage  of  lime  in  the  analysis. 

As  for  example  : — 

Sand  and  silica,  81  -20 
Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxyde  of  iron,        8-00 

Magnesia,  trace. 

Carbonate  of  lime,  5.60 

Water,  1.20 

Organic  matter,  2.60 

Potash,  trace- 

98.60 


67 


This  marl,  as  poor  as  it  is,  containing  less  than  twenty  per 
cent,  of  available  matter,  has  increased  the  crops,  according 
to  the  statement  of  Mr.  May,  fourfold.  It  is  probable,  how- 
ever, that  this  sample  is  not  an  average  of  the  marl  stratum. 
The  soil  of  Mr.  May  is  sandy — at  least  on  parts  of  the  plan- 
tation. 

§  35.  The  marl  of  Col.  Barnes,  upon  the  Tossnot,  is 
similar  to  that  upon  the  plantation  of  Mr.  Ham,  near  Gplds- 
boro'.  It  is  the  blue  marl,  intermixed  with  innumerable 
email  bivalve  shells,  which  have  become  very  thoroughly  de- 
composed. The  bed  is  eleven  feel  thick,  covered  with  a 
stratum  of  sand  five  feet  thick. 

§  36.  The  deposits  of  marl  upon  the  Roanoke  are  no  less ' 
important  than  upon  the  Tan,  Neuse  and  Cape  Pear.     My 
examinations  were  confined  chiefly  to  Halifax  County.    The 
fceds,  considered  as  one  formation,  consist  of  the  following 
members  : — 

1.  Layers  of  decomposed  rock — a  coarse  mica  slate. 

2.  Marl  loaded  with  fossils,  five  feet. 

3.  Marl  of  a  green  color,  with  only  a  few  shells,  eight  to 

ten  feet. 

4.  Blue  clay,  from  ten  to  fifteen  feet  thick. 

5.  Reddish  clay,  two  feet. 

6.  Gravel,  fine  and  coarse,  twenty  feet. 

7.  Gray  sands  and  loam. 

The  marl  lies  deep5  and  is  exposed  only  in  ravines.  It  is 
attended  with  much  expense  in  raising  it.  Mr.  Pope,  of 
Halifax,  has  used  it  upon  his  plantation,  and  has  made  pre- 
parations for  its  extensive  consumption,  and  the  results  huve 
been  favorable.  The  soils  of  Halifax,  having  been  under 
cultivation  a  century  and  a  half,  or  more  than  a  century, 
have  become  exhausted. 


68 

The  soil  of  one  of  the  oldest  plantations  gave  the  following 
results  on  analysis  : — 

Silex  or  sand,  95.38 

Alumina  and  oxyde  of  iron,  1.44 

Lime,  .11 

Magnesia,  trace. 

Organic  matter  and  water,  2.45 

Potash,  .01 


99.39 

It  is  perfectly  similar  to  the  sandy  soils  of  Cape  Fear. 
These  examples  of  sandy  soils  are  beyond  the  reach  of  the 
overflowings  of  the  Roanoke,  which  always  leave  a  rich 
sediment  behind,  and  which  is  employed  as  a  fertilizer,  to  a 
limited  extent. 

The  marl  is  also  too  much  charged  with  sand,  in  parts  of 
the  beds.  The  blue  varieties  gave  the  following  compo- 
sition : — 

Sand,  65.60 

Phosphate  of  lime,  and  oxyde  of  iron,,  9.60 

Carbonate  of  lime,  21.20 

Magnesia>  trace. 

Water  and  organic  matter,  2.60 

99.20 

Regarding  the  available  matter  in  this  marl  as  thirty  per 
cent.,  it  should  not  be  ranked  with  the  inferior  varieties — 
though  the  sand  amount  to  sixty-five  per  cent. 

§  37.  The  marl  of  Fishing  Creek  should  not  be  passed 
over  unnoticed.  It  consists  of  the  three  varieties,  the  red, 
blue,  and  consolidated  marl.  The  blue  has  the  following 
composition  : — 


69 


Silex,  72.50 

Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxyde  of  iron,  6.25 

Carbonate  of  lime,  20.00 

Organic  matter  and  water,  1.25 

100.00 

This  blue  variety  underlies,  or  is  beneath,  the  red  or 
brown  variety.  The  latter  is  composed  of 

Sand,                                                       *  62.50 

Phosphate  of  lime,  and  oxyde  of  iron,  10.00 

Carbonate  of  lime,  25.60 

Magnesia,  .11 

Organic  matter  and  water,  1.30 

99.51 

Both  varieties  are  more  or  less  consolidated,  indicating  a 
favorable  composition  for  agricultural  purposes.  The  parts 
selected  for  analysis  contained  fewer  shells  than  the  general 
mass.  They  are  small  bivalves,  so  common  in  Wayne,  at 
Goldsboro',  and  on  the  Tossnot,  which  is  really  of  a  better 
kind  than  the  varieties  containing  larger  and  less  decompos- 
able fossils. 

The  shelly  portion  contains  more  lime,  which  is  derived 
from  the  shells  themselves  ;  but  less  precipitate,  which  con- 
Cains  phosphate  of  lime.  This  variety  gives  the  following 
composition  : — 

Sand,  15.00 

Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxyde  of  iron,  3.75 

Carbonate  of  lime,  80.00 

Organic  matter,  1-25 


100.00 


70 

The  average  quantity  of  lime  is  above  fifty,  taking  the 
whole  mass  together. 

Intervening  between  the  two  varieties,  the  blue  and  red, 
there  is  a  more  consolidated  portion — a  variety  which  answers 
to  the  appellation  of  stone  marl — though  it  differs  in  its  fossils 
from  that  of  the  Trent  at  Newbern,  as  well  as  from  that  at 
Wilmington.  It  gave  me  the  following  analysis : — 

Sa»d,  17.50 
Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxyde  of  iron 

and  alumina,  7.50 
Magnesia, 

Carbonate  of  lime,  72.12 

Organic  matter  and  water,  .50 

97.74 

This  variety  exceeds  the  bine  and  red  in  the  quantity  of 
fime  ;  and  it  appears  that,  as  the  sand  diminishes  and  the 
lime  is  increased,  there  is  an  approach  to  the  formation  of  a 
solid  substance.  The  solidity  and  toughness,  however,  often 
depends  upon  a  quantity  of  soluble  silica,  which,  when  pre- 
sent, forms  an  exceeding  tough  deposit,  possessing  many  of 
the  characteristics  of  a  burr-stone.  In  this  condition,  the 
stone  is  unfit  for  agricultural  purposes  ;  but  makes  a  durable 
stone  for  walls  and  fences.  It  is  also  an  excellent  fire-stone, 
and  may  be  used  for  the  backs  of  fire-places,  though  it  is 
charged  largely  with  lime. 

§  38.  The  foregoing  samples  of  marl,  derived  from  the 
game  geological  series,,  furnish,  upon  the  whole,  a  uni- 
formity of  composition  which  was  unexpected.  It  is  true  that 
at  few  of  them  contain  an  excess  of  sand,  which  I  think  due 
to  accidental  causes,  and  which  does  not  belong  to  the  depo- 
sit as  a  whole.  It  often  happens  that  currents  bear  along 
sand  in  large  quantities  ;  and  the  position  which  the  shell- 
fish are  occupying,  may  receive,  at  times,  large  supplies  ©f 


71 

arenaceous  matter.  Sometimes,  the  lime  has  fallen  to  teD 
per  cent. — the  sand  increasing  in  proportion.  But  the  aver- 
age proportion  is  thirty-three  per  cent. 

The  selections  for  analysis  were  not  made  with  a  view  to 
obtain  a  maximum  quantity  of  lime  in  the  several  beds  ;  but 
rather  an  average.  It  will  be  seen  hereafter,  that  the  shell- 
marl  differs  materially  in  composition  trom  a  formation  upon 
which  it  rests,  or  which  is  geologically  older,  and  beneath  it. 
There  is,  perhaps,  in  this  older  formation,  more  calcareous 
matter  than  is  usually  credited  to  it.  The  analyses  which 
have  been  made  have  excluded  the  matter  composing  the 
shells,  which  it  often  contained  in  great  abundance.  They 
are  very  frequently  entire  and  unchanged.  In  the  shell- 
marl,  the  fossils,  when  small,  decompose  ;  and,  though  the 
matter  in  which  they  are  imbedded  is  calcareous,  still  the 
fossils  furnish,  by  disintegration,  a  large  share  of  it,  which  is 
obtained  by  analysis. 

The  general  aspect  of  the  mail,  as  it  lies  in  the  beds,  is 
quite  the  same.  The  thickness  is  variable,  exceeding,  in 
a  few  localities,  fifteen  feet  :  in  others,  it  is  less  than  three 
feet.  There  is,  I  believe,  but  one  stratum  which  contains 
those  fossils  which  have  given  it  the  appellation  of  middle 
ter  iary.  I  have  not  seen  it  divided  into  two,  except  the  for- 
mation upon  the  Trent. 


THE  GREEN    SAND— ITS    COMPOSITION,  ETC. 


§  39.  Beneath  the  shell  marl  and  belonging  to  an  older 
formation,  there  are  deposits  which  are  of  the  age  of  the 
cretaceous  rocks  of  Europe.  I  have  referred  to  this  forma- 
tion before,  and  have  stated  that,  as  a  fertilizer,  it  is  superior 


72 


to  the  shell  marls  which  I  have  described.  Its  color  is  green, 
and  when  examined  carefully,  it  is  found  to  be  composed  of 
irregular  particles  of  sand,  which,  when  crusted  upon  paper, 
leave  a  greenish  mark.  The  deposit  is  made  up  mainly  of 
this  matter.  The  most  characteristic  masses  are  upon  the 
Cape  Fear  river,  at  a  place  called  Black  Rock,  and  upon 
the  river  banks  near  Wilmington.  These  beds  belong  to  the 
same  formations  as  those  known  in  New  Jersey  as  marl,  and 
which  are  highly  esteemed  in  that  State,  and  which  deserve 
all  the  praise  which  has  been  bestowed  upon  it. 

The  loss  of  the  specimens  collected  for  examination  in  the 
lal  oratory,  rendered  it  impossible  to  furnish  analyses  of  the 
green  sand.  I  shall,  therefore,  give  two  or  three  analyses  of 
the  Delaware  marl  of  the  same  age.  It  is  important,  to  know 
what  it  contains,  and  as  there  isa  great  uniformity  of  compo- 
sition in  all  the  beds  both  in  New  Jersey  and  Delaware,  and 
probably  in  those  of  this  State,  its  composition  will  be  a  guide 
to  those  who  wish  to  use  the  same  material  upon  the  Cape 
Fear  or  wherevei  it  occurs. 

Its  composition  is  represented  by  the  following  analyses  : 

Silica,  70.20  70.31 

Potassa,  6.10  6.  51 

Protoxide  of  iron,  15.25  1516 
Alumina,                3.14  2.63 

Water,  6.22  6.26    J.  Rodgers. 

100.91     J.  Mansfield. 

Professor  J.  C.  Booth's  Memoir  of  the  geological  survey  of 
the  State  of  Delaware,  p.  71,  1841. 

Another  analysis,  upon  the  same  page  as  the  foregoing, 
gave  — 

Silica,  49.30 

Potassa,  9.16 


73 


Protoxyde  of  iron,  24.46 

Alumina,  7.82 

Water,  11.26 

100.00 

The  percentage  of  potash  in  the  last  analysis  is  nearer 
the  average  of  the  formation  than  the  two  preceding  it.  It  is 
to  potash  that  its  fertilizing  effects  have  been  attributed.  Most 
of  this  substance  is  entirely  destitute  of  carbonate  of  lime. 
Still,  if  the  fossil  shells  were  intermingled  with  the  materiel 
submitted  to  analysis,  it  would  give  a  notable  quantity  of 
carbonate  of  lime.  When  the  fossils  are  decomposed  and 
intermixed  with  green  sand,  carbonate  of  lime  is  then  found. 
It  will  be  noticed  in  the  foregoing  analysis,  that  phosphate 
of  lime  does  not  appear  in  the  list  of  substances  which  it 
contains  j  notwithstanding  this,  1  believe  it  will  always  be 
found. 

In  a  single  specimen  from  Black  Rock,  consisting  of  the 
inside  cast  of  a  shell  common  to  the  formation,  I  found  a 
remarkable  amount  of  phosphate  of  lime.  The  substance 
examined  differed  in  no  respect  from  the  general  mass,  being 
made  up  as  usual  of  the  grains  of  green  sand,  moulded  to 
the  inside  of  a  cucculloea  :  the  outside  was  removed  This 
specimen  contained  52  per  cent,  of  phosphate  of  lime.  This 
was,  no  doubt,  an  accidental  circumstance  ;  by  sorm  cause 
or  other  animal  matter  had  been  preserved  to  that  large 
amount.  If  this  amount  should  be  found  in  the  casts  of  the 
shell  so  common  in  the  formation,  it  will  become  an  impor- 
tant fertilizer ;  not  simply  from  the  potash,  but  from  the  pre- 
sence of  an  equally  important  element,  phosphate  of  lime. 

§  40.  The  green  sand  in  Delaware  frequently  consists  of 
two  porlions — an  uppei  and  a  lower.  The  lower  is  the  one 
regarded  as  destitute  of  carbonate  of  lime.  The  upper  is 
calcareous,  and  approaches  in  composition  to  (he  shell  marl 
of  this  State. 


74 


Thus,  the  upper  consists  of—- 
Carbonate of  lime,  18.6 
Green  sand,  33. 
Sand,  35 
Clay,  14 


100.6 
Another  analysis  gave — 

Carbonate  of  lime,  24.7 

Green  sand,  35 

Sand,  31 

Clay,  9 

99.7 

§  41.  The  foregoing  furnishes  the  elements  which  may 
be  expected  in  the  lower  deposits  of  the  Cape  Fear  and 
Neuse.  Black  Rock  is  ten  miles  below  Brown's  landing. 
The  green  sand  at  this  place  is  consolidated  to  the  water's 
edge,  and  extends  to  an  unknown  depth  beneath  the  water. 
There  are  ten  or  twelve  feet  above  water,  extending  along 
the  water's  edge,  against  which  boats  may  anchor.  At  this 
place,  the  marl  is  so  accessible,  that  when  the  navigation  of 
the  river  is  practicable,  boats  may  take  in  a  cargo  of  it  at  a 
trifling  expense.  It  is  yet  to  be  tried,  and  yet  to  be  determin- 
ed, how  far  this  material  will  admit  of  transportation.  Should 
the  coal  oi  Deep  river  find  its  way  down  the  Cape  Fear,  and  * 
boats  are  returning  empty  or  with  light  loads,  it  is  not  at  all 
improbable  that  the  green  sand  may  be  used  in  Chatham  and 
Moore  counties  as  a  fertilizer.  This  is  rendered  still  more 
probable,  from  the  fact  that  fertilizers  are  rare  upon  the  upper 
waters  of  this  river,  and  the  lands  require  something  of  thii 
kind.  Should  phosphate  of  lime  constitute  an  important  eler 
ment  of  this  bed  of  green  sand,  it  would  bear  transportation 
still  farther,  and  admit  of  its  use  m  the  interior  of  the  countie* 
bordering  upon  the  river  and  its  branches. 


75 

The  strata  of  rock  at  this  place  consist  simply  of  the  lower 
mass  already  described,  and  a  bed"  of  pebbles  upon  which 
reposes  a  thin  bed  of  shell  marf  and  sand.  The  green  sand 
may  be  regarded  as  a  continuous  stratum,  differing  from  the 
shell  marl  in  this  respect.  At  Mr.  J.  Sykes's,  9  miles  be- 
low Black  Rock,  the  formation  appears  again. 

§  42.  On  the  Neuse,  in  the  vicinity  of  Goldsboro',  a  for- 
mation appears  of  considerable  extent,  unlike  the  shell  marl, 
and  unlike,  also,  the  green  sand.  Its  fossils  do  not  yet  declare 
whether  it  is  an  upper  mass  of  green  sand  or  the  lowest  divis- 
ion of  the  tertiary.  Fragments  of  an  ammonite  have  been 
obtained  from  it,  but  the  exogyra  and  belemnite,so  characteris- 
tic of  the  green  sand,  have  escaped  detection  up  to  this  time. 
The  formation  is  a  consolidated  marl  or  marl  stone;  of  a  light 
gray  and  a  yellowish  brown. 

The  following  strata  belong  to  a  section  near  Col.  Collier's 
plantation,  to  whom  I^m  greatly  indebied  for  the  interest  he 
manifested  ai  well  as  in  aiding  the  survey. 

1.  Green  marly  clay. 

2.  Marl,  eleven   feet,  containing  spine  of  echine,   dabs' 
toes,  &c. 

3.  Gray  sandy  clay. 

4.  Yellow  clay  intermixed  with  some  gravel. 

5.  Sand. 

The  consolidated  or  stone  marl  lies  upon  a  hill  side.  It 
is  about  six  feet  thick.  It  is  granular,  and  might  be  employ- 
ed as  a  building  material,  as  well  as  lime  for  agricultural  pur- 
poses. It  is  composed  of — 

Silex  or  sand,  39.20 
Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxyde  of  iron,       1.60 

Carbonate  of  lime,  55.20 
Magnesia,  60 

Potash,  trace. 

Water  and  organic  matter,  2.20 

98.80 


76 


The  good  effects  of  this  marl  appeared  in  its  use  upon  an 
exhausted  patch  of  land  :  as  a  consequence,  it  gave  a  fine 
growth  of  clover,  which  came  in  without  sowing-  the  seed. 

§  43.  A  stone  marl  at  Wilmington,  lying  immediately  upon 
the  green  sand,  is  composed  of 

Silex,  20.00 

Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxyde  of  iron,  5.00 

Magnesia,  .42 

Carbonate  of  lime,  72.00 

Organic  matter  and  water,  2.00 


99.42 

Intermixed  with  this  consolidated  marl  are  many  fragments 
of  coprolites,  forming  with  it  a  very  singular  conglomerate. 
If  it  should  prove  extensive,  it  would  form  an  excellent  ferti- 
lizer. This  specimen  \\as  obtained  of  Dr.  Togno,  at  his  ex- 
perimental Vineyard. 

Another  specimen  of  stone  marl  gave  the  following  results: 

Silex,  27.40 

Phosphate  of  lime  and  oxyde  of  iron,  1 .40 

Magnesia.  trace. 

Carbonate  of  lime,  60.00 

Water  and  organic  matter,  11.60 

100.40 

§  44.  The  marl  stones,  the  composition  of  which  1  have 
just  given,  require  grinding  to  fit  them  for  use.  When  fine, 
1  should  regard  their  composition  superior  as  fertilizers  to  the 
shell  marl.  Careful  burning  in  a  kiln  will  fit  them  for  use. 
In  doing  this,  caution  should  be  exercised  not  to  expose  them 
to  a  heat  sufficient  to  fuse  them.  The  greater  eflect  which 


77 

materials  have  upon  the  soil,  when  fine,  mi^ht  pay  the  addi- 
tional expense  required  to  bring  them  to  tne  condition  of  a 
fine  powder.  The  beds  of  stone  marl  are  quite  limited 
patches  of  ordinary  marl,  consolidated  by  (he  calcareous  mat- 
ter they  contain.  In  mass,  and  exposed  to  the  air,  after  re- 
moval from  the  quairy,  they  become  haid  ;  and  in  that  con- 
dition they  become  quite  good  building  stone,  as  well  as 
a  stone  capable  of  resisting  the  heat  of  a  fire  without  losing 
carbonic  acid. 


MODE  IN  WHICH  MARL  AND  LIME  PRODUCE 
THEIR  EFFECTS. 


§  45.  As  the  marls  which  have  been  described  in  the  fore- 
going pages  exert  their  influence  upon  vegetation,  in  part,  by 
the  carbonate  of  lime  contained  in  them,  it  will  not  be  out  of 
place  to  speak  of  the  mode,  or  modes,  by  which  it  is  supposed 
to  operate.  Many  theories  have  been  proposed  to  account 
for  the  action  of  lime  upon  vegetation.  It  is  even  true  that 
some  maintain  that  its  action  is  scarcely  to  be  depended  upon, 
or  that  it  has  any  action  at  all. 

A  gentleman  remarked,  at  a  meeting  convened  for  the  pur- 
pose of  discussing  matters  relating  to  agriculture,  that  he  had 
tried  lime  upon  a  sandy  soil,  and  it  did  no  good  ;  and  he  then 


78 


tried  It  upon  a  clay  soil,  and  there  it  did  no  good  ;  and  hence 
believed  all  that  had  been  said  upon  the  value  of  lime  should 
be  received  with  considerable  deduction  from  the  statements. 
Now,  it  so  happened  that  both  varieties  of  soil  had  been  sub- 
jected to  analysis,  and  it  was  proved  that  the  sandy  soil  was 
quite  deficient  in  organic  matter,  and  that  the  clay  soil  was 
rich  in  lime,  containing  some  three  or  four  per  cent.  Now, 
it  is  conceded  that  one  of  the  conditions  icquired  for  the  exhi- 
bition of  favorable  effects  of  lime  is.  that  there  should  be  or- 
ganic matter  ;  and,  in  the  case  of  a  soil  already  rich  in  an 
element,  it  is  also  proved  that  further  additions  of  that  ele- 
ment is  not  followed  with  visible  results.  Here  were  two 
cases,  then,  which  had  failed  for  want  of  judgment  and 
knowledge  in  selecting  the  kind  of  soil  upon  which  to  apply 
a  remedy,  and  an  ignorance  of  the  condition  required  to  se- 
cure activity  in  the  remedy  itself.  Undoubtedly,  there  are 
many  disappointments  of  a  similar  kind,  where  experiments 
are  tried,  while  ignorant  of  the  condition  necessary  for  the 
action  of  the  remedy,  or  ignorant  of  the  kind  of  soil  upon 
which  the  experiment  was  tried. 

I.  So  far  as  the  plant  is  concerned,  lime  operates  favora- 
bly upon  vegetation  by  supplying  an  element  necessary  to  the 
subsistence  of  the  vegetable.  Analysis  of  the  ash  of  any 
plant  gives  an  amount  of  lime  in  the  state  of  a  carbonaie — 
not  that  a  carbonate  is  the  condition  the  lime  is  in  when  a 
part  of  the  living  plant.  Any  of  the  organic  acids,  combined 
with  lime,  become  carbonates  in  burning.  One  of  the  uses 
of  lime  is  to  supply  one  kind  of  nutriment.  The  amount  re- 
quired by  different  parts  of  plants  varies  with  the  part.  The 
outside  integuments  are  richer  in  lime  ihaa  the  seed  or  wooJy 
part  ;  and  some  plants  require  more  lime  than  others.  It  is 
the  food  of  the  plant :  and  its  use,  so  far  as  the  plant  is  con- 
cerned, is  all  its  use. 

But,  2.  Its  use  and  effects  in  the  soil  are  not  so  simple  as 
has  been   stated   with   respect  to  the  plant.     As  an  alkaline 


79 

earth,  having  a  strong  affinity  for  all  acids,  it  combines  with 
them,  and  forms  a  neutral  salt ;  and  this  salt,  being  soluble, 
is  taken  up  by  the  roots.  We  need  scarcely  speak  of  its 
power  to  decompose  astringent  salts — the  proto-sulphate  of 
iron,  formed  in  those  soils  where  pyrites  exist,  and  which, 
when  formed,  are  decomposed  ;  and  we  may  thus  find  sul- 
phate of  lime,  gypsum,  instead  of  sulphate  of  iron. 

3.  If,  in  soils  abounding  in  peaty  matter,  organic  acids  are 
formed, — these   will   combine  with  lime,  as   already  stated. 
But  these  acids  being  formed,  and  coming  in  contact  with  the 
matter  of  the  same  origin,  act  as  preservatives  ;  or  they  are 
termed  antiseptic  bodies,  which  prevent  putrefaction.     When 
neutralized,  they  cease  to  be  antiseptics,  or  preservers,  and 
the  remainder  of  the  unchanged  matter  goes  speedily  to  decay. 
In  this  way,  time  promotes  the  decay  of  vegetable  matter, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  the  salts  formed  become  food  for  plants; 
and  the  salts  formed  are  called  organic  salts  of  lime.     So  far, 
facts  and  theory  support  each  other. 

4.  In  the  laboratory,  lime  acts  as  a  solvent  on  silica  ;  but 
it  requires  a  high  temperature.     It  is  supposed  by  some  that 
it  dissolves  it  in  the  soil.     But  a  more  rational  explanation  is, 
that  it  decomposes  silicates,  consisting  of  silicate  of  alumina, 
potash,  and  soda  ;    by   which   action,   it  brings   silicate  of 
potash  into   a  soluble  condition,   forming   also  one   of  the 
elements  necessary  to  the   straw   of  wheat.     These  silicates 
are  essential  to  the  strength  of  the  stems  of  grasses  and  cereals 
— when  deficient,  they  are  weak  and  lodge.     There  is,  how- 
ever, considerable  obscurity  on  these  points      The  affinity  of 
lime  for  other  bodies  is  strong,  and  it  is  rational   to  suppose 
that,  in  the  soil,  its  action  is  not  unlike  that  I  have  attempted 
to  explain. 

5.  Resulting  from  its  chemical  action,  there  are   physical 
effects  upon  the  soil  itself.     No  one   need   be  deceived  as  to 
facts.     Lime  spread  upon  a  stiff,  well  drained  soil,  makes  it 


80 


light  and  loose.  Now,  this  does  not  result  from  a  mechanical 
mixture  ;  it  comes  from  a  prior  chemical  action,  and  the 
looseness  is  an  effect  due  to  that.  It  can  be  in  no  other  way 
than  that  which  results  from  decomposition. 

6.  Another  effect  of   lime  upon  soils,  especially   when  in 
combination  with  organic  matter,  is  to  give   to   light   soils  an 
increased  retentiveness  of  water,  and  an  increased  power  to 
absorb  water.     This  I    have   proved   by   direct  experiment. 
A  merely  pulverized   limestone  will  not  increase  this  power  ; 
but  marl,  which  is  in  a  state  of  extreme  subdivision,   will, 
when  it  holds  in  combination  organic  matter.     Hence,  one 
of  the  effects  of  fine  marl  upon  a  loose  sandy  soil,  is   to  give 
it  a  body,  or  a  retentiveness  of  water.   -  Marl  put  into  a  hill  of 
growing  potatoes  becomes  a  fertilizer,  while  lime  would  de- 
stroy the  vitality  of  the  seed  by  absorbing  its  organic  water. 
Marl    will   absorb   ammonia,  and  thereby  furnish   fertilizing 
matter.     From  the  foregoing  views,  if  correct,  it  appears  that 
lime  acts  vitally,  chemically  ai  d  physically.      Vital,  in  being 
a  constituent  element  of  plants  ;  chemical,  in  its  action  upon 
silicates  arid  organic  matter  ;  physical,  in  imparting  friability 
to  argillaceous  soils,  and  compactness  to  sandy  ones. 

7.  The  effects  of  quick  lime  and  marl   are   not   identical. 
They  have,  however,  a  common  condition  of  the  soil  which 
is  required  foi  their  action.    I  have  already  spoken  of  this  condi- 
tion :  it  is  the   presence  of   organic    matter.     I  hold    that  or- 
ganic matter  is  essential  to  the  formation  of  an  organic  ?alty  both 
soluble  and  suitable  to  the  nature  of  vegetating  matter.      It  is 
proved  by  experiment,  1  believe,  that  thus  far,  the  effect  of  marl 
and  a  sub-caustic  lime  may  be  identical.    But  sub-caustic  and 
caustic  limes  are  capable  from  their  superior  affinities  for  potash 
and  soda,  to  do  more  in  the  line  of  chemical  action  than  marl, 
especially  upon  argillaceous  soils,  where  it  may  combine  with, 
or  as  it  is  frequently  called,  liberate,  potash  ;  and  it  is  probable 
that  marl  may  exert   the  same  influence   in  a  feeble  degree. 
Marl;  however,    from  its  complex  character,    secures  effects 
of  a  different  kind.     Referring  to  the   composition  of  any  of 


81 


the  shell  marls,  it  will  be  observed,  that  in  addition  to  carbo- 
nate of  lime,  it  also  contains  phosphate  of  lime.  It  will  be 
observed,  too,  that  some  of  the  samples  of  marls  are  compara- 
tively poor  in  carbonate  of  lime',  but  still  they  are  represented 
as  strong  fertilizers;  as  producing  in  some  instances  four  limes 
the  amount  of  corn  and  cotton  as  would  have  been  grown 
without  them.  From  these  and  other  facts  looking  the  same 
way,  it  is  probable  that  the  effect  ol  mail  is  .as  mucn  due  to 
phosphate  of  lime  as  to  the  carbonate  ;  and  it  may  turn  out 
that  some  of  the  argillaceous  deposits  which  scarcely  effervesce 
with  acids,  may  yield  a  still  larger  amount  of  the  phosphates 
than  the  marls,  \vhicli  give  the  largest  quantity  of  lime. 
Hence,  it  will  be  important  to  look  farther  than  the  marls, 
and  furnish  chemists  with  all  the  varieties  of  deposits  which 
are  not  essentially  sandy.  Potash,  also,  even  the  shell  marls, 
should  not  be  overlooked. 

The  beds  associated  with  the  marls  proper,  are  various,  and 
they  open  afield  of  research  and  experiment  for  the  planter 
and  chemist.  Any  of  the  argillaceous  beds  may  be  used  in 
experiment.  It  is  an  important  circumstance,  that,  although 
sand  is  predominant,  in  a  large  part  of  the  lower  country,  there 
are  beds  of  clay  and  marl  at  hand,  which  may  be  employed' 
to  correct  this  peculiarity. 

§  46.  Some  of  the  beds  of  marl,  or  those  which  are  over, 
or  beneath  them,  are  highly  pyritous,  or  contain  sulphuret  of 
iron.  This  substance,  when  it  decomposes,  under  ordinary 
circumstances,  forms  an  astringent  salt,  which  is  injurious  to 
vegetation,  certainly_if  in  large  quantities.  But  this  substance 
is  not  to  be  thrown  away  and  ejected  into  the  streams.  If  its 
decomposition  is  effected  in  the  midst  of  marl,  and  especially 
as  a  compost  heap,  it  will  give  the  farmer  gypsum,  a  substance 
really  important  in  all  kinds  of  soils.  Marl  or  lime  is  always 
the  corrective  of  the  astringent  salts,  such  as  copperas,  or  the 
sulphate  of  iron,orthesulpnate  of  alumina  and  potash,  which 
may  be  furnished  by  stratas  intermingled  with  pyrites. 
But  small  doses  of  sulphate  of  iron  I  believe  to  be  useful  : 

6 


82* 


hence,  when  pyrites  fs  disseminated  in  a  bed  of  marl,  I  should 
esteem  it  so  much  the  more  ;  and,  if  found  to  be  too  strong,  it 
is  easily  corrected  or  weakened,  as  it  may  be  called,  by  inter- 
mixture of  pure  marl,  or  the  pure  carbonate. 

There  is  a  small  circu  mstance  worth  a  passing  notice.  The 
marls  contain  bones,  as  all  know  very  well ;  and  the  laborers 
are  in  the  habit  of  committing  them  to  the  waters,  if  upon  the 
bank  of  the  river  or  stream.  As  they  are  worth  at  least  fifty 
cents  per  bushel,  it  will  be  economy  to  save  them..  If  broken 
into  small  pieces,  and  dissolved  with  oil  of  vitriol,  the  best  of 
fertilizers  is  made.  When  dry,  one  hundred  pounds  of  bone 
require  twenty-five  pounds  of  acid  for  solution.  This  amount 
when  well  mixed  with  gypsum,  or  any  neutral  substance,  to 
dry  it  and  give  it  bulk,  is  sufficient  for  half  an  acre.  But  the 
bones,  at  present,  are  worth  still  more  as  objects  of  natural 
curiosity,  and  should  be  preserved  for  that  purpose. 

Sulphuric  acid  will  cost  three  dollars  per  hundred  weight  ; 
it  may  be  procured  in  the  larger  towns  for  two  dollars  and 
fifty  cents  per  hundred  weight.  The  object,  in  using  oil  of 
vitriol,  is  to  make  the  bones  soluble,  by  which  immediate  effects 
follow. 

§  47.  The  details  relating  to  agriculture,  which  are  spread 
out  upon  the  foregoing  pages,  embrace  those  general  facts 
which  were  observed  and  collected  during  a  reconnoissance  of 
several  months.  Although  they  may  not  contain  all  the  in- 
formation which  many,  and  perhaps  most,  of  the  readers  of 
this  Report  desire,  and  have  reason  to  expect,  still,  I  believe 
the  way  is  prepared  for  pursuing  inquiries  to  better  advantage 
than  before  :  and  which  will  conduce  to  a  system  of  agricul- 
ture which  shall  be  better  adapted  to  the  special  condition  of 
the  soil,  climate,  productions,  and  labor  employed  in  the  part 
of  the  country  and  State  under  consideration. 

Climate  is  a  consideration  which  should  not  be  disregarded, 
It  must  always  modify  and  change,  more  or  less,  thesystemsof 
husbandry.  •  If  disregarded  by  the  agriculturists,  it  will  be  afe 
a  cost  aad  sacrifice  of  something  valuable.  If  the  soil  is  dis- 


83 


regarded,  it  will  be  a  loss  in  the  crop;  and  neither  can  the  cha- 
racter of  the  laborers,  their  capacities  and  strength,  be  left  out 
of  the  account  in  making  up  our  minds  on  the  best  systems  of 
culture  and  of  crops.  It  is  of  the  utmost  importance,  to  be 
correctly  informed  of  the  systems  of  culture,  and  the  kind  of 
crops  most  in  use  in  foreign  countries.  But  the  entire  system 
of  means  and  ends  should  also  be  brought  together  m  this 
information. 

When  we  are  told,  for  the  first  time,  of  the  great  value  of 
the  turnip  crop  in  England,  it  at  once  wakes  up  incentives  to 
adopt  it  here.  When  the  system  of  agriculture,  which  ispui- 
sued  in  England  or  Flanders,  is  lepresented  to  us,  there  are 
strong  temptations  to  adopt  it,  before  we  know  the  peculiar 
causes  which  have  led  to  its  general  adoption  in  those  coun- 
tries. The  kind  of  labor,  the  cost  of  labor,  the  intelligence 
and  capacity  of  laborers,  are  important  items  of  information, 
before  we  can  safely  decide  upon  the  question  of  adoption  or 
rejection.  The  culture  of  roots  for  feeding  stock  is  carried  to 
perfection  in  England,  and  it  is  a  means  of  wealth.  But 
whether  the  means  would  crown  the  end,  in  this  country,  is 
quite  questionable.  England  enjoys  a  humid  climate  ;  and 
vegetables,  among  which  is  corn,  scarcely  ripen  at  all.  But, 
supposing  it  would  ripen  occasionally,  can  an  uncertain  crop 
become  profitable  ?  If  corn  would  ripen  every  season,  would 
the  turnip  and  root  system  of  husbandry  prevail  there?  and 
may  not  roots,  as  food,  suit  better  in  the  climate  of  England, 
than  in  the  drier  and  less  steady  climate  of  America? 

§  48.  I  wish  to  inculcate  and  enforce  the  following  doctrine  : 
that  every  country,  of  sufficient  extent  to  possess  an  individu- 
ality, favors  certain  productions  ;  and,  in  order  to  carry  these 
productions  to  the  highest  points  of  perfection  to  which  they 
are  susceptible,  it  may  be  done  at  a  less  cost  in  money  and 
labor  there  than  anywhere  else  ;— labor  and  money,  laid  out 
when  circumstances  are  favorable,  than  when  they  are  unfa- 
rorable.  But  systems,  often,  have  certain  advantages  which 
may  be  adopted  ;  and  an  eclectic  33  stem,  properly  methodized 
and  adapted  to  circumstances,  may  become,  in  every  country,. 


84 

the  bes!  of  systems.  English  husbandry,  fully  adopted  in 
almost  any  part  of  our  country,  would  fail  in  its  ends  ;  but 
there  are  points  in  it  which  may  be  adopted  anywhere,  and 
should  be  everywhere. 

The  application  of  mind,  and  the  bestowment  of 
thought,  on  husbandry  and  syslematic  agriculture,  is  what  is 
most  wanted.  That,  combined  with  facts  and  a  knowledge 
of  the  principles  involved  in  husbandry,  will  give  direction  to 
means  and  expenditure  of  labor  and  money  to  profitable 
results.  The  pursuit  of  agriculture,  thus  conducted,  places 
the  business  on  a  level  with  the  professions ,  and  secures  to  the 
individual  the  same  standing  and  influence  which  they  have, 
and  the  mental  ability  to  cope  with  them  in  the  arena  where 
mind  alone  controls  and  governs. 


GEOLOGICAL  POSITION  AND  RELATION  OF 
THE  TERTIARY  BEDS— GEOLOGICAL -TIME- 
MEANING  AND  ORIGIN  OF  THE  TERMS, 
EOCENE,  MIOCENE,  ETC.,  AND  USE  OF  THE 
WORD  SYSTEM,  ETC. 


§  49.  The  marls  have  been  consideied  thus  far  as  deposi- 
tories of  those  elements  which  only  interest  the  agriculturist ; 
or  as  bodies  containing  those  fertilizers,  which  are  adapted  to 
restore  wasted  lands  to  their  original  agricultural  capacities. 
But  there  are  other  points  which  interest  many  persons  j  other 
inquiries  relating  to  those  deposits,  in  addition  to  thoso  of 


85 


which  1  have  been  speaking  :  it  is  their  age,  their  relations  to 
each  other,  and  to  other  deposits,  which  may  be  in  immediate 
proximity,  or  at  a  distance.  Enquiries  of  this  sort  bring  up 
many  questions — questions  which,  at  first  sight,  seem  very 
easy  to  be  disposed  of,  but  which,  on  closer  inspection,  are 
found  beset  with  many  unexpected  difficulties.  However 
•this  may  be,  I  remark,  that  these  enquiries  relating  to  the  age 
of  the  strata,  or  to  the  system  and  series  of  rocks,  and  where 
they  geologically  belong,  are  not,  in  this  region,  easily  deter- 
mined. Opinions  upon  the  question  I  have  stated,  have 
been  expiessed  by  the  distinguished  Professor  Mitchell,  of 
Chapel  Hill,  and  by  Mr.  Conrad  of  Philadelphia,  and  others; 
and  it  is  highly  probable  that  these  gentlemen  are  right  in 
the  main;  but  whether  their  views  may  not  require  a  partial 
modification  is  yet  to  be  seen.  It  is  to  be  recollected  that  these 
strata  of  marl  are  scattered  over  an  extended  surface,  and  are 
disconnected  with  each  other :  they  are  isolated  beds,  lying 
in  a  belt  of  country,  at  least  four  hundred  miles  from  North 
to  South,  and  two  hundred  miles  in  breadth,  in  its  widest  part ; 
and  that  the  slight  disturbance  which  this  belt  has  undergone, 
since  the  era  of  the  green  sand,  is  too  slight  to  show  uncom- 
formability.  We  are  therefore  obliged  to  settle  the  question, 
by  reference  to  the  fossils  of  the  beds,  and  the  animals  now 
living  in  the  Atlantic  ;  relying  upon  the  determination  of  the 
ratio  of  the  dead  to  the  living  species. 

§  50.  But,  before  I  proceed  to  speak  of  the  age  of 
these  deposits,  it  seems  necessary  to  make  some  preliminary 
explanation.  When  we  sp^ak  of  age  in  geology,  the 
idea  of  time  is  involved,  and  the  question  might  well  be  put, 
how  long  a  time,  or  how  many  years  ago  is  it,  since  these  strata 
of  marl  were  deposited. 

Time,  when  it  enters  as  an  element  in  geological  reasoning, 
is  not  expressed  absolutely,  but  relatively.  Time,  considered 
as  an. element  in  human  affairs,  is  both  absolute  and  relative. 
It  is  absolute  in  all  our  calculations,  because  it  has  its  units. 
A  rot  ition  of  the  earth  upon  its  axis  is  the  unit;  and  its  revo- 


86 


lution  round  the  suri  is  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  and  one- 
fourth  of  this  unit.  As  it  is  the  movements  of  stars  which 
give  us  the  unit,  it  is  called  sidereal  time  ;  and  all  events 
which  have  transpired  since  man  was  created,  is  measured  by 
this  unit,  obtained  from  the  observations  upon  their  motion. 
We  have  data,  therefore,  for  absolute  time.  In  the  history  of 
man,  then,  there  are  two  facts  not  known  in  geological  time, — 
a  unit  and  a  starting  point. 

Geologists  have  sought  for  a  unit,  but  have  failed.  Sir 
Charles  Lyell  has  counted  the  layers  in  the  'sediments  of 
the  Mississippi,  and  measured  the  suspended  mud  in  its  wa- 
ters, which  it  annually  brings  to  the  sea.  Rationally,  it  car- 
ried him  back  forty  thousand  years,  since  they  began  to  be 
formed  ;  but  the  unit  was  still  problematical.  He  has  counted 
the  steps  of  the  Niagara,  as  it  has  receded  from  a  lower  to  an 
upper  lake;  but  the  steps  are  unequal.  It  can  give  us  no 
unit  in  its  march.  Unlike  the  earth  and  planets,  which  ro. 
tate  in  equal  time,  or  which  revolve  in  great  circles,  and  re- 
turn to  the  starting  points  in  equal  time,  the  geological  move- 
ments of  all  kinds  are  unequal,  and  their  perturbations  so 
great  that  they  give  us  no  unit  to  measure  geological  revolu- 
tions by.  For  us,  space  too  is  a  unit,  and  it  gives  us  a  meas- 
ure for  time  ;  so  that  time  is  space,  and  space  is  lime  •  bu* 
geology  cannot  convert  space  into  time,  nor  time  into  space. 

§  51 .  But  geologists  have  sought  for  units  in  life  ;  the  search 
wa*  foiled.  Even  man,  whose  life  is  most  exalted,  gives 
no  true  measure,  no  unit,  either  in  his  individuality,  or  in  the 
sum  and  aggregate  of  his  generations.  Here,  we  can  scarcely 
refuse  to  inquire,  why  geology  gives  us  no  unit  by  which  to 
count  the  years  of  the  earth?  But  then  the  enquiry  is  futile  : 
and  we  can  only  say,  that  it  can  have  no  final  cause — it  can 
have  no  practical  use.  But  the  determination  of  relative 
time  is  of  immense  use — it  is  practical. 

ft  has  a  practical  application  to  the  relations  of  our  corn 
fields,  our  iron  and  our  marls.  Time  then,  in  geology,  is  only 
relative,  as  it  has  no  unit.  If  we  take  geological  movements 


ipward  space,  or  horizontal  space,  we  find  these  move- 
ments have  taken  unequal  times  ;  and,  in  equal  times,  the 
movements  have  been  unequal.  Vertical  elevations  may 
amount  to  three  feet  in  a  century,  and  the  sediments  may  ac- 
cumulate thirty  feet  in  thickness  in  five  centuries  ;  and  yet, 
when  centuries  are  compared,  both  the  sediment  and  the  ver- 
tical lise  are  unequal  in  equal  times.  The  chronology,  then, 
of. the  earth,  is  computed  relatively:  time,  which  measures  its 
history,  is  divided  into  unequal  periods,  and  those  periods  have 
visible  representations  in  the  sediments  of  its  crust.  Their 
super- position  upon  one  another,  exhibits  their  relationship  to 
the  eye,  and  the  contemporaniety  is  proved  by  (he  oneness  of 
their  products,  and  the  sameness  of  their  representatives  of  a 
former  life— the  remains  of  the  dead  entombed  in  the  rock-, 
whose  formation  was  in  progress  when  they  were  the  sole 
possessors  of  earth. 

§  52.  Taking  the  visible  representation  alluded  to,  as  time, 
in  i\  geological  sense,  our  computations  are  made  possible  by 
breaks  in  the  series.  The}'  are  not,  however,  like  the  contin- 
ous  and  regular  clicks  of  a  chronometer,  which  divide  out 
the  time  into  parts  of  a  unit ;  the  breaks  not  only  separate 
physically  the  visible  representations,  but  put  to  a  stand- 
still the  currents  then  bearing  onward  humbler  forms  of  life, 
and  their  burthens  of  matter.  The  break  is  an  upward 
movement,  and  it  marks  the  end  of  a  dynasty.  Strange  as 
it  may  seem,  the  earth's  crust  is  marked  by  sychronous  breaks, 
almost  universal.  Breaks  which  pursue  the  directions  of 
mountain  chains  are  sychronous;  and  parallel  mountains  are 
formed  by  sychronous  breaks  and  elevations.  After  all, 
(here  is  the  semblance  of  law  in  the  movements  and  breaks, 
which  have  seared  the  earth's  crust,  and  brought  to  an  end 
the  existing  order  of  things.  The  area  of  sediments  is  changed 
— the  direction  of  the  rivers  is  changed — the  life,  as  it  is  re- 
presented in  species,  is  extinguished  and  changed.  But, 
again, — after  the  turmoil  attendant  upon  change  has  passed 
life  begins  to  be  lit  up  in  new  abodes  ;  ami  as  each 


88 


break  is  followed  by  new  physical  relations,  the  life  which 
appears  is  modified  to  fit  the  change.  Species  are,  therefore, 
ne\v  ;  typical  forms  remain  ;  and  the  great  types  upon  which 
life,  and  its  various  forms,  were  to  be  represented ,  are  pre- 
served. The  great  scheme  upon  which  life  and  its  phenomena 
were  to  be  displayed,  has  never  been  broken  or  departed  from. 
Each  break,  and  the  new  sediments  which  follow,  indicate 
a  new  period,  having  its  beginning  in  the  lowest  of  the  strata  : 
and,  as  these  new  sediments  are  going  on,  life  is  still  ebbing 
and  flowing,  and  the  individuals  which  are  dying  are  en- 
tombed in  the  accumulating  wastes  of  the  older  continents. 
The  breaks,,  then,  mark  the  outgoing  and  the  incoming  of 
new  systems.  The  space  spanned  by  two  breaks  is  one  of 
the  unequal  periods  in  the  earth's  history  and  progress.  The 
distinguished  French  Geologist  computes  no  less  than  twenty- 
seven  breaks,  which  have  destroyed  the  existing  and  living 
Saurians  ;  each  break  approaching  to  universality  in  their 
effects.  The  earth's  crust  is  a  sepulchre.  Its  sediments, 
which  are  ten  miles  thick;  are  full  of  the  relics  of  plants  and 
animals. 

§  53  As  we  are  unable  then,  to  compute  in  years,  when 
the  present  order  ol  things  began,  or  when  the  lower  orders 
of  animals  first  appeared  upon  the  earth,  Sir  Charles  Lyell 
has  proposed  to  express  the  simple  relations  of  the  past  to 
the  present,  by  words  adapted  to  that  purpose.  Observing* 
for  example,  that  the  chalk  beds  are  destitute  of  any  species 
of  animals  and  plants,  which  now  exist,  and  that  the  succeed- 
ing beds  contain  them,  he  takes  his  starting  point  from  the 
latter,  and  atte'mpts  to  express  their  relations  to  the  present,, 
by  terms  of  comparison.  The  mode  of  proceeding,  in  order 
to  determine  the  comparative  expression  was,  first  to  ascer- 
tain the  whole  number  of  species  of  fossils  in  the  beds,  and 
then  ascertain  how  many  are  living  in  the  seas  of  the  pre- 
sent day.  In  1830,  the  number  of  species  known  and  des- 
cribed in  the  beds  next  above  the  chalk,  was  1238.  The 
number,  since  that  period,,  has  increased  to  5000  at  least. 


80 


Of  this  large  number,  three  and  a  half  to  four  per  cent.,  are 
living  now.  The  small  number,  then,  ascertained  as  the 
surviving  species,  which  have  resisted  the  change  and  revo- 
lutions of  the  globe,  indicate  an  approach  to  the  condi- 
tions which  now  exist  upon  the  earth's  surface,  and  it  has 
been  regarded  therefore,  as  the  dawn  of  the  present.  The 
word  Eocene,  which  means  literally  the  dawn,  is  applied  to 
those  bed?,  or  that  formation  which  has  preserved  from 
three  and  a  half  to  four  per  cent,  of  the  species  which  now 
live.  It  is  applied  to  the  lower  beds  of  the  tertiary  system. 
The  beds  which  are  typical  ol  this  part  of  the  system,  un- 
derlie Paris  and  London,  and,  being  basin-shaped,  they 
have  been  called  the  Paris  and  London  basins.  The  former 
was  the  field  in  which  the  celebrated  Cuvier  labored,  whose 
name  and  labors  have  conferred  honors  upon  the  French 
nation.  But  time  moves  on;  and  the  next  step  in  the  suc- 
ceeding series  shows  an  advance  ;  they  contain  seventeen 
per  cent,  cf  species  or  kinds,  which  live  in  our  present  seas. 
The  strata  containing  this  per  centage,  repose  directly  upon 
the  Eocene.  As  the  proportion  of  ihe  dead  to  the  living, 
bears  still  a  small  ratio  to  the  living,  or  is  a  minor  propor- 
tion still,  of  the  dead  to  the  living,  the  formation  is  called 
Miocene.  The  rocks  which  succeed  and  rest  upon  the  lat- 
ter, are  called  Pliocene — meaning  that  the  proportion  &[ 
the  living  is  more  than  the  dead.  When  the  per  centage 
of  living  species  is  thirty-five  and  fifty  per  cent ,  the  term 
is  qualified,  and  is  called  either  "older  or  lower  Pliocene; 
aiid,  as  the  per  centage  still  increases,  in  the  succeeding  de- 
posits, and  rises  as  high  as  ninety- five,  the  portion  of  the 
series  is  denominated  newer  or  upper  Pleiocene.  Certain 
beds  which  compose  the  Sub-Appenine  hills,  and  which  are 
very  thick,  and  attain  an  elevation  of  fifteen  hundred  feet, 
belong  to  the  latter.  It  would  be  interesting  here,  to  illus- 
trate the  slow  accumulations  of  those  beds,  for  the  purpose 
of  imparting  a  correct  view  of  the  great  length  of  time 
which  passed  while  the  beds  were  being  deposited  ;  but,.  I 
can  only  state  the  fact  j  and  then  proceed  to  say,  that  ever 


90 


since  the  full  dawn  of  the  present,  beds  of  immense  thick- 
ness have  accumulated  in  a  slow  manner,  filled  with  marine 
and  terrestrial  animals,  most  of  which  are  identical  with 
the  present.  But  it  is  found  on  careful  exploration,  that 
oven  in  these  modern  deposits,  one  or  more  species  out  of  a 
hundred,  have  become  extinct;  and  that  some  of  the  living 
ones  have  undergone  a  slight  change  ;  some  which  are  quite 
small  now,  were  formerly  large.  Causes  then  still  operate 
which  produce  a  change  in  a  minor  degree,  and  which 
alter  those  characters  which  are  the  most  susceptible  of  the 
influence  of  physical  agents.  Those  modern  deposits, 
which  furnish  evidences  of  slight  changes,  are  called  Post- 
pliocene. 

§  54.  The  names,  the  origin,  meaning  and  application  of 
which  I  have  given,  are  subordinate  beds  of  the  tertiary 
system.  It  has  been  separated  from  the  older  upon  which 
it  reposed,  because  all  of  its  beds  or  sub  divisions  contain 
some  few  species  which  are  not  extinct ;  the  lowest  or  old- 
est furnishing  (he  smallest  proportion,  yet  constant,  of  all 
the  others  which  succeed  ;  the  newest,  the  largest  propor- 
tion; and,  as  succession  is  proved  by  the  position  of  the  bed, 
one  above  the  other,  so  we  may  infer  that  there  has  been, 
or  was  progress  also.  This  is  shown,  by  facts  which  have 
not  been  stated,  viz  :  the  increase  in  number  and  rise  in 
rank  of  the  terrestrial 'animals,  which  only  began  to  figure 
in  the  tertiaries.  This  progress  is  indicated  by  the  increase 
of  those  kinds  of  animals  whose  physical  constitutions  ap- 
proximate very  closely  to  man. 

§  55.  Notwithstanding  the  plausibility  of  the  arrange, 
ment,  and  sub  divisions  of  the  tertiary  beds  and  the  eupho- 
ny of  the  terms,  Eocene  and  Miocene,  &c.,  applied  to  them 
respectively,  it  cannot  fail  to  impress  us  that  it  is  artificial 
and  arbitrary.  For  this  reason,  probably,  we  find  it  diffi- 
cult to  apply  it  to  the  tertiaries  of  the  Atlantic  coast.  It 
seems  to  be  more  applicable  to  European  tertiaries  ;  and,  it 


91 


is  very  possible,  that  it  is  because  they  are  better  known 
than  ours.  It  is' not  impossible  to  apply  the  scheme  to  our 
formations,  when  considered  by  themselves;  but,  we  do  not 
succeed  as  yet  in  fixing  the  relations  which  our  tertiaries 
bear  to  those  of  Europe.  It  is,  however,  a  popular  scheme, 
and  has  been  adopted  by  our  Geologists  and  writers;  and 
hence,  it  will  be  difficult  to  replace  it  by  any  other,  even  if 
(it  should  be  founded  upon  characters  more  natural  and  less 
arbitrary. 

§  56.  In  this  connexion,  it  will  not  perhaps  be  amiss,  to 
explain  the  word  systemmoTQ  fully  than  I  have  yet;  though 
its  geological  meaning  will  not  probably  be  misapplied.  A 
geological  system  is  a  series  of  rocks,  forming  a  subordinate 
part  of  the  earth's  crust,  which  were  formed  and  consolida- 
ted during  a  period  when  the  physical  conditions  were  the 
same,  or  nea'rly  so.  As  there  are  many  systems;  it  is  im- 
plied in  this  definition,  that  the  earth's  crust  has*  been  sub- 
ject to  change;  and  that  the  periods  are  marked,  in  the  be- 
ginning and  ending  of  these  periods,  by  certain  changes 
which  they  have  undergone.  We  know  thein-comings  and 
out-goings  of  periods,  by  phenomena  visible  in  the  rocks ; 
they  are  tablets  containing  the  recoids  ;  and  it  is  a  remark- 
able fact,  that  the  records  are  not  confine'd  to  physical  chan- 
ges ;  they  also  extend  to,  and  embrace,  those  which  concern 
the  species  of  plants  and  animals  of  each, 

§  57.  It  is  agreeable  to  observation,  that  a  vertical  move- 
ment of  the  rocks  is  accompanied  by  a  decided  change  in 
the  kinds  of  animals  and  plants  which  had  previously  lived  ; 
they  becoming  mostly  extinct,  while  their  successors  will 
differ  from  them  in  kind.  Now,  our  definition  of  a  system, 
and  the  remarks  following  it,  seem  to  make  the  vegetable 
and  animal  kingdoms  subordinate  to  the  physical  or  inor- 
ganic kingdom;  in  other  words,  that  both  are  controlled  by 
physical  forces  ;  and  that  these  forces  beii-g  modified  in  in- 
tensity, are  the  causes  which  are  instrumental  in  destroy- 


92 


ing.  the  existing  kinds  ;  and,  also,  of  favoring  certain,  spe- 
cial kinds  in  the  succeeding  system  ;  or,  th-at  the  latter  are 
consequents  of  the  antecedents  referred  to. 

The  changes  of  species,  resulting,  as  is  supposed,  from  move- 
ments of  the  earth's  crust,  will  not  appear  strange,  when  we 
are  informed  that  it  at  once  involves  a  changejin  climate  ;  a 
change  in  the  humidity  and  dryness  of  the  atmosphere  ;  a 
change  as  to  heat  and  cold  ;  all  of  which  exert,  upon  all 
kinds  of  living  matter,  important  effects.  Life  requires  the 
presence  of  certain  elements,  as  oxygen,  carbon/ etc.,  and 
also,  an  apparatus  upon  which  the  elements  act,  as  the  lungs, 
•stomach,  etc.  These  must  remain,  in  some  form,  whatever 
change  takes  place- — But  life  may  continue  under  an  infin- 
ity of  modification  of  apparatus,  and  we  may  suppose,  that 
the  modifications  of  this  kind  are  intended  to  adapt  species 
to  the  minor  conditions  of  life  and  their  fluctuations  aris- 
ing from  changes  in  the  earth's  crust.  All  the  important 
and  controlling  elements  still  in  force  species  of  both  king- 
doms live  on — the  minor  changes  n'ot  affecting  life  in  the 
abstract,  but  only  the  form  of  the  apparatus.  Minor  fluc- 
tuations affect  only  external  forms  of  apparatus  ;  the  differ- 
ent species  are  characterized  by  these  modified  external 
forms.  The  origin  of  species  is  consistent  with  changes  ia% 
the  position  of  the  earth's  crust,  and  its  relations  to  water, 
which  modify  th'e  condition  of  the  atmosphere,  the  temper- 
ature of  the  ocean,  and  its  depth.  These  conspire  to  modify 
the  causes  which  fit  the  media,  in  which  organic  bodies 
live  and  move,  to  execute  the  functions  of  life  on  the  best 
and  easiest  terms.  * 

Sir  Charles  has  proved  that  the  temperature  and  humidity 
of  any  given  place  are  modified  by  proximity  to  the  ocean  or  to 
waters,  and  by  height;  and  the  creation  of  new  species  is 
required  to  fit  them  for  those  alterations  consequent  on  the 
change  in  vertical  height. 

§  58.  Vertical  rno'/ements  are  indicated  by  breaks  in  the 
series,  which  for  the  most  part  run  in  certain  directions 


93 


for  great  distances.  The  Appalachian  chain  of  mountains, 
the  Blue  Ridge,  are  instances  which  show  a  vertical  move- 
ment at  some  former  period,  accompanied  with  breaks,  or 
fractures  of  the  earth's  crust.  Both  the  range  and  fractures 
are  parallel,  and  extend  through  many  degrees  of  latitude. 
£\ut  many  chains  traverse  the  earth's  crust;  all  accompanied 
with  breaks  of  the  strata.  These  pursue  different  direc- 
tions: and  it  seems  that  there  is  a  law  involved  in  these  facts: 
for  example  :  those  chains  which  run  in  the  same  direction 
were  elevated  at  the  same  time ;  the  force  beneath,  which 
produced  the  breaks,  or  whatever  that  form  may  have  been,, 
operated  simultaneously  in  one  direction.  The  forces  have 
been  operative  continuously,  or  in  paroxysms.  When  in 
paroxysms,  the  period  of  activity  is  short,  followed  with 
long  intervals  of  repose  ;  when  operative  continuously,  the 
period  of  activity  is  long.  The  paroxysmal  modify  the 
minor  conditions  of  life  speedily;  while  the  slow  scarcely 
produce  distinguishable  effects  in  the  historical  era,  and 
not  at  all  in  the  life  of  man. 

I  see  no  objections  to  the  foregoing  views,  the  subjection 
of  species  or  life  to  physical  forces  and  elements;  for  it  does 
not  imply  that  final  causes,  respecting  those  forces,  had  no 
reference  to  life.  They  precede  life  in  the  order  of  time  ; 
but  the  entire  machinery  may  have  been  devised,  and  put 
in  operation,  with  the  sole  reference  to  life  which  was  to 
come,  and  to  give  dignity  and  importance  to  those  forces, 
and  to  the  arena  upon  which  life,  and  its  attributes,  were 
to  be  displayed. 


94 


BEDS  AND  STRATA  BELONGING  TO  THE  TER- 
TIARY OF  THE  LOWER  COUNTIES. 

§  60.  The  periods  represented  by  the  shell  marl  befas, 
or  the  fossiliferous  deposits  being  included,  and  except  the 
green  sand,  are  : — 1st.  Post  Pliocene;  2d.  Pliocene;, 3d.  Mio- 
cene; 4th  Eocene  'r  beneath  which,  repose  the  green  san.js, 
which  belong  to  the  system  known  as  the  cretaceous,  or 
chalk  or  cretaceous  system. 

1.  POST  PLIOCENES. — -Under  this  head,  I  include  all  those 
beds  ranging  along  the  sea  margin  of  the  Atlantic  slope. 
They  consist  of  isolated  beds  of  the  recent  oysters,  con- 
taining, also,,  the  more  common  molusca  of  the  coast ;  but 
the  most  common  by  far,  are  the  common  oyster,  (Ostrea 
edulis,)  and  common  clam,  (Venus  rnercenaria.)  They  are 
known  as  oyster  beds.  They  are  usually  regarded  as  col- 
lections and  accumulations  oi  shells  by  the  Indian  tribes 
formerly  occupying  the  coast.  This  view  may  be  sustain- 
ed in  some  instances, — but  it  often  happens,  that  the-accu- 
mulation  or  beds  are  too  extensive,  and  contain,  withal,  a 
mixture  more  accordant  with  that  view  which  ascribes  them 
to  the  operations  of  nature — which  regards  them  as  b§ds 
made  up  of  individuals  which  grew  upon  the  spots  where 
\ve  now  find  them,  and  which  .have  suffered  a  vertical 
movement  which  has  raised  them  above  the  level  of  ths- 
ocean.  The  beds  occupy  the  more  elevafed  points,  or  the 
rounded  eminences  ;.  which,  while  submerged,  were  the 
summits  of  low  hills,  below  the  agitations  of  the  waves, 
It  is  needless  now  to  dwell  upon  the  characteristics  of 
these  beds.  They  are  clearly,  and  without  doubt,  to  be 
refered  to  the  Post  Pliocene ;  and,  though  they  may  be 
regarded  as  possessing  the  characters  of  the  present  species 
now  occupying  the  coast,  still5  it  is  not  difficult  to  £n.d  in-- 


95 

dividuals  which  are  very  large  among  tbe^'common-sized 
ones;  and  there  are  even' beds,  all  the  individuals  of  which 
are  larger  than  those  now  living  upon  the  coast.  Near 
Newbern,  beds  of  very  large  oysters  occur,  especially  on 
the  plantation  of  Mr.  Pasteur. 

It  is   highly  probable,  that  different  beds   were  elevated 
'at  different  times  ;  and  hence  those  farther  inland,  all  things 
being  equal,  are  older   than   those   immediately   upo-n  the 
beach. 

§  61.  It  may,  at  first,  appear  a  startling  statement,  that 
our  coast  is  subject  ta  variations  of  level.  Of  the  truth  of 
this  view,  however,  there  can  be  no  doubt; — so  numerous 
are  the  phenomena  indicating  vertical  movements,  that  it 
has,  at  many  points,  become  common  belief. 

A  subject  of  so  much  interest  is  worthy  of  tarther  con- 
sideration.  I  spoke  of  a  vertical  movement,  as  if  this  com- 
prehended all  the  facts  of  the  case.  This  is  not  so.  The 
facts  go  to  show  that  there  are  oscillations — that  there 
have  been  both  upward  and  downward  movements.  The 
upward  movement  is  proved  by  the  existence  of  raised 
beaches  of  sand  and  shingle,  and  beds  of  oysters  and  clams 
50  or  75  feet  below  low  water  mark.  The  downward  move-  * 
ment  is  proved  by  the  remains  of  submerged  forests,  con- 
sisting mostly  of  the  stump  of  the  present  pine  which  grows 
along  the  coast.  This  downward  movement  is  far  from 
being  confined  t-o  a  few  miles  of  coast ;— it  affects  both 
Sounds  their  entire  length.  The  stumps  are  now  to  be 
seen  in  shore  :  some  at  high  water  mark ;  others  at  low 
water  :  and  more  standing  far  in,  and  constantly  submerged. 
So  common  are  these  old  stumps,  that  the  fishermen  are 
obliged  to  incur  a  great  expense  in  clearing  off  these  sub- 
merged stumps  from  the  bottom  of  both  Sounds — as  there  is. 
no  fishing  ground  which  is  free  of  them.  At  the  present,  it 
is  perhaps  impossible  to  determine  which  way  the  Sounds  are- 
moving.  I  am  of  opinion  that  there  is  not  a  uniformity  in 


96 


this  respect ; — that,  while  parts 41137  be  actually  sinking, 
others  are  rising,  or  stationary.  The  street  along  the  wa- 
ter's edge,  in  Beaufort,  was  laid  out  many  years  ago,  and 
marked  by  cannon,  set  as  posts,  deeply  in  the  sand.— 
One  portion  of  this  street  is  constantly  beneath  water  now, 
as  if  there  had  been  a  change  of  level  since  the  street 

was  laid  out. 

• 

§  62.  While  upon  the  subject  of  change  of  level  of  the 
great  Sounds,  Albemaile  and  Pamlico,  it  will  not  be  foreign 
to  the  subject,  to  notice  the  change  which  has  taken  plac^ 
in  the  saltness  of  the  waters  of  the  Sounds.  This  is  not  sup- 
posed to  arise  from  a  change  of  level — a  subsidence — though 
subsiding  is  not  to  be  left  out  of  view.  It  is  attributed 
mainly  to  the  opening  of  new  inlets,  by  which  the  ocean's 
waters  have  a  freer  communication  with  the  sounds.  The 
freshness  of  these  waters  had  become  such,  that  marine 
shell-fish  had  died  out ;  but  since  the  opening  of  the  new 
inlet,  the  waters  are  in  the  act  of  being  peopled  again  with 
marine  animals.  We  cannot  but  notice,  in  these  facts,  what 
has  taken  place  in  other  parts  of  the  world,  and  other  times 
than  our  own — where  many  alternations  of  fresh  and  salt 
water  had  occurred,  each  containing  the  fossils  peculiar  to 
that  state. 

§  63.  But  to  return  to  the  Post  Pliocene  deposits.  I  remark, 
that  they  do  not  contain  the  bones  of  extinct  land  quad- 
rupeds, such  as  the  mastodon,  elephant,  horse,  &c. — that 
is,  none  have  as  yet  been  discovered  in  them,  though 
sought  for.  It  goes  to  prove  that  these  quadrupeds  had 
already  become  extinct,  prior  to  their  formation  ;  or,  I  may 
say,  the  evidence  leans  strongly  that  way,  when  all  the 
facts  are  told.  The  coast  oyster  banks  are  the  latest  form- 
ations — the  newest : — -and  probably  their  elevation  or  re- 
clamation from  the  oceanic  waters  has  been  effected  in 
times  only  just  anterior  to  the  historical  period. 


97 


§  64.  There  is  what  may  be  called  a  deposit  upon  the 
banks  of  the  Koanoke,  which  is  worthy  of  notice,  for  this 
reason:  it  marks  distinctly  the  difference  of  deposits,  which 
have  been  made  in  geological  time,  from  those  made  in  ab- 
solute time.  This  deposit  consists  of  fresh  water  shells,  and 
contains  along  with  them  the  bones  oi  the  turtle,  alligator, 
turkey,  dog,  deer,  and  those  of  man  ;  together  with  the  rude 
utensils  common  to  the  savage  state.  It  is  a  bank,  one 
fourth  of  a  mile  long,  and  twelve  rods  wide,  and  raised 
eight  feet  above  the  adjacent  plain.  The  part  abounding  in 
these  remains,  is  about  four  feet  thick.  This  notice  of  a 
formation  is  important  only  as  illustrative  of  the  distinction 
between  the  ancient  beds  and  the  modern,  containing  the 
bones  of  man,  together  with  his  implements  of  war.  and  his 
apparatus  for  cooking.  It  is  characteristic  of  all  deposits, 
the  world  over,  which  contain  the  remains  of  man.  blended 
with  the  remains  of  animals,  all  of  which  are  now  living; 
all  going  to  prove  that  man  has  not  been  nn  inhabitant  of 
the  earth  only  for  a  short  period;  inasmuch,  too,  as  his  re- 
mains are  found  in  none  of  the  formations  containing  ex- 
tinct species  «f  either  land  or  marine  animals. 

§  65.  The  Post  Pliocene  beds  are  co-extensive  with  the 
Atlantic  coast.  They  are  naked  beds;  or  with  the  slight 
covering  of  vegetable  mould  which  rarely  exceeds  eighteen 
inches — usually  less  I  have  seen  large  trees  growing  over 
the  beds  ;  but,  in  many  places,  they  are  naked  wastes — as 
at  'Nagshead.  These  wastes  are  often  exposed  to  the 
furious  Northeast  winds  which  sweep  over  the  sands  and 
hills,  and  bear  them  inland  It  will  be  seen,  then,  that  a 
beach  is  not  wholly  raised  by  vertical  movements  effected 
by  a  subterranean  force.  Upon  the  Carolina  coast,  the 
breakers  carry  forward  the  sand  ;  and,  when  they  flow  up 
the  inclined  plane,  the  sand  is  spread  out  with  great  even- 
ness, and  then  left  there  by  the  receding  or  retiring  wave. 


The  wind,  when  strong,  sweeps  overt  he  dry  and  loose  sand, 
and  bears  it  still  farther  :  when  it  becomes  drifting  sand. 
The  coast  gains  more  than  it  loses;  and  not  only  are  the 
sands  brought  up,  but  pieces  of  wrecks  of  vessels,  iron  bolti, 
spikes,  etc,;  and  even  silver  coins,  from  the  sunken  wrecks, 
are  sometimes  found.  A  spear  or  fishing  tackle,  which  is 
lost  overboard  some  20  or  30  rods  out,  will  be  sure  to  be 
found  upon  the  beach  in  two  or  three  days.  This,  perhaps 
will  not  happen  on  all  shores  ;  but  those  formed  and  acted 
upon,  like  those  at  Nagshead,  favor  such  a  result. 

§  66.  PLIOCENE. — Anterior  to  the  post  pliocene,  the  beds 
which  were  deposited,  whether  in  small  basins,  or  in  the 
form  of  irregular  belts  skirting  the  seashore,  or  in  caverns, 
where  terrestrial  remains  of  extinct  quadrupeds  are  found, 
have  received  the  name  pliocene.  The  pliocene  admits  of 
a  sub-division;  and  has  been  designated,  according  to 
position  :  the  oldest  and  inferior,  as  it  contains  a  larger  pro- 
portion of  extinct  species  than  living  ones,  is  called  older 
pliocene  : — the  superior,  which  contains  fewer  extinct  than 
living  ones,  is  the  newer  pliocene. 

Pliocene  beds  are  not  unfrequent  in  North-Carolina  ; — 
but  the  beds  which  I  now  regard  as  pliocene,  are  not  fully 
determined  as  such  :  as  the  evident  intermixture  of  fossils 
of  pre-existing  formations,  and  the  present  uncertainty  of 
the  species  now  living  upon  the  coast,  renders  the  appli- 
cation of  the  rule  of  per  centage  uncertain  :  And  I  may 
go  farther,  and  question  whether  it  is  not  impracticable  to 
draw  lines  of  demarkation  between  the  pliocene  and  the 
miocene  strata,  lor  the  same  reasons. 

Following,  however,  the  guides  which  have  preceded  me, 
I  shall  refer  certain  beds  to  boih  divisions  of  the  tertiary — 
the  pliocene  and  miocene — without  attempting,  however, 
to  show  to  which  division  of  the  pliocene  any  of  the  marl 
beds  belong. 


99 


§  67.  To  the  pliocene,  I  refer  certain  beds  near  Newberm 
—-those  upon  the  plantation  of  Mr.  Donnell.  To  the 
miocene,  I  refer  the  beds  upon  the  Tossnot  and  Little  Coa- 
tentney  Creeks,  in  the  upper  part  of  the  valley  of  the  Neuse, 
and  between  the  Neuse  and  Tau  rivers. 

In  the  beds  upon  the  Tossnot  and  Little  Contentney, 
I  found  the  ear  bones  of  whales,  (cetacea,)  probably  true 
whales,  of  the  family  Balcenidoz.  and  their  vertebrae  ;  and 
also  bones  of  the  mastodon ;  and  a  species  of  Orbicula, 
differing  from  the  only  recent  one  I  know.  Those  of  Fish- 
ing Creek,  a  tributary  of  the  Tau,  may,  also,  be  referred, 
perhaps,  to  the  older  pliocene;  but  not  certainly.  Those 
of  Fishing  Creek  contain  pectens,  which  are  referred  to  the 
miocene  by  Mr.  Coarad.  The  investigation  requires  to 
be  continued. 

To  the  miojene,  also,  I  refer  the  beds  at  Rocky  Mount, 
Tauboro',  and  Goldsboro'.  The  bones  of  vertebrated  ani- 
mals are  found  in  all  of  the  beds  at  the  localities,  particularly 
those  belonging  to  the  mastodon.  We  are  obliged  to  refer 
the  mastodon  giganticum  to  the  miocene  : — the  tooth,  or 
portion  of  one  I  procured  at  Tossnot  is  not  the  tooth  of 
the  N.  Augustidens  : — but  we  have  associated,  with  these 
bones,  the  large  pectens,  P.  MADISONIUS,  &c. 

The  section  at  Tauboro'  exhibits  the  following  strata  : — 

1.  Sand,  at  the  water's  edge. 

2.  Clay,  containing  lignite. 

3.  The  shell  marl,  with  abundance  of  pectens, 

P.  Madisonius,  eight  feet,  contains  the 
fossils ;  and  three  or  four  feet  of  clay, 
without  fossils. 
4.  Sand  and  gravel  intermixed. 

The  marl  contains  coprolites.  Rocky  Mount  furnishes 
a  similar  section,  with  similar  fossils,  resting  on  granite. 


100 


Near  Newbern,  the  beds  which  have  been  referred  to  as 
pliocene,  contain  fulgur  canaliculatus,  and  fusus  quadricos. 
tat  us,  (mioccne  fossils,)  astarte  uatica,  fissurella,  calyptrea, 
pectusculus,  &c. ;  the  large  beds  of  the  other  pectens  be- 
ing absent.  The  fossils  of  the  Newbern  beds,  already  spo- 
ken of,  on  the  plajitatior  of  the  Hon.  Mr.  Donnell,  contain  a 
large  number  of  shells  which  1  am  unable  to  distinguish 
from  those  of  the  coast.  Mr  Donnell's  beds  are  white, 
loose  beds  with  crumbling  shells,  more  or  less  chalky,  in 
consequence  of  being  above  water.  The  opening  is  re- 
cent— the  bottom  had  not  been  reached.  A  fragment  of 
a  bone  of  the  mastodon  was  found  also  in  this  place. 

We  can  scarcely  avoid  comparing  this  marl,  with  its 
accompanying  fossils,  with  the  crag  of  Suffolk.  The  re- 
markable display  of  sands,  gray,  red  and  brown,  embraced  in 
these  beds,  assimilate  the  entire  formation  of  ihis  age  upon 
our  coast  to  the  crags  of  Suffolk,  (England,)  and  the 
fohluns  of  Touraine,  in  France 

§  68.  The  beds  of  marl,  upon  the  Cape-Fear,  at  Eliza- 
beth ;  at  Walker's  Bluff;  those  of  Messrs.  Lassai^ne,  Cro- 
marty,  and  others,  have  also  been  reienul  to  ihe  miocene 
period.  At  Elizabeth,  the  strata  are  various;  consisting 
of  sand,  clay,  with  light  sandstone,  marl,  &c.  &c.,  termin- 
ating with  colored  sands,  as  follows : 

1.  Sands  at  the  bottom  of  the  cliff;  gray  and 

thin  seams  of  clay,  and  some  lignite. 

2.  Bluish  and  sandy  marl,  pyritous. 

3.  Thin  btds  of  coprolites,   pebbles    mixed 

with  shells  and  sand. 

4.  Consolidated  sand,  with  fossils,  area. 

5.  Marl,  three  or  four  feet  thick. 

6.  Ferruginous  sand,  with   diverse   stratifi- 

cation. 

7.  Blue  clay. 


101 


8.  Surface  sands,  of  various  colors,  twenty- 

five  feet. 

9.  Between   ihe  clay   and  surface,  same  red 

conglomerate  of  Fayetteville.  It  thins 
out  before  it  reaches  Elizabeth,  being  the 
surface  sand,  which  is  very  thick  in  the 
pine  forests,  and  rests  upon  tno  thin  stra- 
tum of  blue  clay. 

It  is  probable  that  the  marl  rests  upon  the  upper  eocene. 
The  changes  from  the  sands  below,  the  rolled  pebbles  and 
coprolites  at  the  bottom  of  the  marl,  indicate  a  change,  and 
show  the  propriety  of  separating  the  upper  from  the  lower 
beds  of  the  blutf  or  bank.  The  beds  of  Elizabeth,  Bladen 
County,  abound  in  teeth  of  placoid  fishes — a  single  tooth 
of  chacharodon  me£alodon,  saurian  teeth,  and  a  middle 
portion  of  thigh  bone  of  a  large  saurian  But,  as  the  teeth 
and  bones  are  more  abundant  among  the  rounded  stone, 
it  looks  highly  probable  that  they  may  have  been  derived 
from  some  older  rock. 

$  69.  At  Brown's  Landing,  the  b?d  of  marl  in  the  bank 
contains  fossils  of  the  same  kind  as  at  Elizabeth  arid  Wal- 
ker's Bluff;  and  also  contains  many  individuals  of  the 
exogyra  costala,  a  fossil  regarded  as  characteristic  of  the 
green  sand,  (cretaceous.)  These  individuals  are  in  a  fine 
state  of  preservation — some  large,  and  others  small — but 
none  of  them  have  been  rolled  on  a  beach.  Both  valves 
are  together,  and  the  fossil  is  in  a  perfect  condition.  No 
belemnite,  an  almost  constant  associate,  has  as  yet  been 
lound  at  this  olace.  Notwithstanding  the  presence  of  ihe 
exogyra,  I  am  disposed  to  regard  this  bed. .as  well  as  those 
above,  as  miocene  ;  on  the  ground  that  these  beds  are  de- 
rived from  the  green  sund.  This  view  is  supported  by  the 
fact,  that  one  fourth  of  the  bed  is  made  up  of  the  particles 
of  this  cretaceous  rock.  In  the  same  position  I  place  the 
marl  of  Mr.  McDowell,  one  mile  from  Brown's  Lauding, 


102 


the  marl  of  Miss  Andress,  where  the  exogyra  abounds, 
both  young  and  old,  associated  with  an  oliva,  identical* 
I  believe,  with  the  one  living  on  our  coast,  near  the  Fort 
at  Smithville. 

$  70.  Whatever  may  be  the  result  of  inquiries  respecting 
the  age  of  the  shell  marl  deposits,  it  is  plain  that  the  only 
mode  by  which  satisfactory  results  can  be  reached,  is,  by 
a  copious  collection  from  all  the  beds  ;  and,  from  the  coast, 
ot  all  living  species.  This  should  be  undertaken  ; — tor  the 
questions  are  involved  in  obscurity  and  doubt ;  and  although 
this  course  does  not  appear  to  advance  the  economical 
objects  of  the  Survey,  still,  it  usually  turns  out,  that  what 
appears,  at  firsU  only  a  scientific  interest,  does,  in  the  end, 
promote,  also,  the  practical  application  of  the  facts  discov- 
ered, or  already  known. 

The  majority  of  the  shell  marls  of  North-Carolina  are 
referred  to  the  miocene  period,  by  Professor  Mitchell — who 
is  sustained  by  Mr.  Conrad,  of  Philadelphia.  Those  of  this 
subdivision  of  the  tertiary,  which  are  far  inland,  as  those 
at  Elizabeth,  contain  very  few,  if  any,  of  the  molusca  of 
the  green  sand,  and,  perhaps,  very  few  of  the  eocene;  while 
farther  below,  as  at  Brown's  Landing,  the  lower  fossils  are 
very  common,  and  they  appear  as  much  at  home  there  as 
any  ef  their  associates.  It  is  probable,  then,  that  this  oc- 
currence is  due  to  the  proximity  of  the  beds  to  which  they 
belong.  It  should  be  observed,  that  these  deposits  of  shell 
marl  are  in  banks — which  does  not  favor  the  view  gener- 
ally entertained  that  they  reposed  in  and  upon  the  strata 
upon  which  they  lived  and  died.  They  seem,  rather,  to 
be  beds  formed  by  the  action  of  waves,  which  have  piled 
them  together  in  great  disorder — though  .hey  are  not 
water  worn 

§  71  EOCENE  — The  lowest,  or  oldest  bed,  which  I  am 
able  to  refer  to  this  formation,  consists  of  pebbles  rounded 
by  attrition.  They  are  beds  from  fifteen  to  twenty  feet 


108 


thick  ;  and,  at  their  western  outcrop,  form  rounded  hills, 
as  at  and  in  the  vicinity  of  Carthage,  in  Moore  County. 

Similar  beds  and  eminences  traverse  the  State.  In  the 
vallies  of  the  Koanokeand  Dan  rivers,  they  extend  beyond 
Leaksville.  They  overlap  the  pyrocrystalline  rocks,  the 
granites,  and  gold  slates,  lying  beyond  the  fossiliferous 
beds,  which  succeed  them  in  the  ascen<  ing  order. 

The  extension,  eastwaidly,  towards  the  coast,  cannot 
be  marked  or  determined  very  satisfactorily.  Thin  beds 
of  rounded  pebbles  are  known  beneath  the  fossiliferous  beds  i 
but  nothing  interesting  has  been  elicited  concerning  them. 
The  pebbles  are  pure  quartz  ;  derived  from  the  quartz 
veins  of  the  gold  slates.  In  many  places,  the  pebbles  are 
cemented  together  by  iron  ;-*-the  coarser  and  finer  sands 
are  also  cemented,  forming  a  pudding  stone.  These 
cemented  masses  have  taken  various  imitative  forms  : — as 
tubes,  balls,  cups,  &c.  The  quantity  of  iron  investing  the 
clay  and  sand  is  sufficiently  large  to  pay  for  extracting  it 
for  working.  It  olten  furnishes  good  lirnonite.  The 
origin  of  tie  cemented  beds  must  be  due  to  ferruginous 
springs,  which  have  ceased  to  flow;  but  which  bring  up 
the  carbonated  oxyde,  and  flowing1  subsequently  through 
and  over  the  beds,  have  filled  the  intf  rstices  with  ferrugin- 
ous matter.  This,  adhering  strongly  to  the  stones  and 
sand,  by  this  means  has  formed,  finally,  a  pudding  stone, 
by  cementation.*  The  ancient  beds,  which  consist  of 
rounded  stones  and  coarse  gravel,  with  only  obscure  lines 
of  stratificaiion,  are  called  shingle  beds.  They  mark  the 
beginning  of  a  new  order  of  things  ;  and,  hence,  are  impor- 
tant, as  a  means  for  defining  the  boundaries  of  systems  or 
formations. 


The  term  pudding  stone  has  long1  been  in  use  j  and  I 
apply  the  word  to  cemented  masses  formed  above  water; 
while  the  term  conglomerate  is  applied  to  those  cemented 
masses,  or  cohering  peobles,  which  have  been  formed  be- 
neath the  water. 


104 


Thin  beds  should  never  be  regarded  as  similar,  in  their 
origin,  to  norther  drift,  or  transported  rocks,  or  transport- 
ed gravels  and  sand  ;  at  least,  in  the  mode  in  which  mate- 
rials, which  have  the  same  form,  at  the  North,  have  been 
transported.  There  is  not  a  boulder  or  a  drift  bed  in 
North-Carolina.  The  masses  which  have  been  moved  in 
this  and  other  Southern  States  have  been  by  means  of 
rivers  and  oceanic  waves — those  means  which  exist  now, 
and  are  in  operation  under  our  eyes. 

But,  to  return  to  the  ancient  shingle  beaches — I  observe 
that  they  form  the  outer  rim  of  all  the  ternary  deposits — a 
rim  which,  it  is  true,  may  be  interrupted  in  places;  but 
they  range  in  a  line,  and  cross  the  State  to  the  westward 
of  the  first  fell  of  the  principal  rivers  which  drain  the 
Atlantic  slope. 

§  72.  The  beds  which  succeed  the  former,  are  clays 
and  sands  of  a  greenish  color,  cherty  clays  and  marls,  to- 
gether with  interrupted  beds  of  consolidated  marl.  The 
latter  assumes  the  condition  of  a  porous  rock,  sufficiently 
hard  to  form  a  building  stone.  It  is  an  impure  limestone — 
carbonate  of  lime  forms  about  three-fourths  of  the  rock. 
Soft  marl  underlies  the  rock. 

The  tlrckness  of  all  the  beds  which  I  now  regard  as 
eocine,  is  not  well  determined — the  limestone,  or  upper 
part  of  it,  is  only  five,  six.  and  perhaps  ten  feet,  in  some 
places.  At  Col.  Collier's  plantation,  near  Goldsboro',  't  is 
only  five  or  six  feet.  The  lithologicnl  characters  vary 
very  much  at  different  points;  and  sandy  beds  are  replaced 
by  cherty  ones,  or  the  cherty  clays  and  liVnestone. 

At  Wilmington  the  rock  is  extiemely  tough  and  hard — 
though  porous  It  is  highly  silicious.  Beneath  this,  is  a 
softer  portion,  made  up  of  carbonate  of  lime,  which  is  in- 
termixed with  broken  and  rolled  cnprolites;  forming  a 
conglomerate.  This  portion  of  it  is  highly  valuable  as  a 
fertilizer,  and  has  been  employed  as  such  by  Dr.  Togno, 


105 


at  his  vineyard  near  Wilmington.  This  gentleman's  en- 
terprise is  one  of  great  importance;  and  the  results  of  his 
experiments  will  be,  to  throw  lioht,  not  only  on  the  marls 
as  fertilizers,  but  upon  the  vine  and  other  fruits  which  will 
bear  cultivation  in  this  State. 

§  73.  At  Wilmington,  the  fossils  consist  of  scutilloe 
royersi ;  one  or  two  species  of  echinodens  ;  teeth  of  the 
genus  charcharodon  sulciiens,  galeocerda  pristodontus* 
lamna  elegans,  &c. — the  latter  of  whish  are  by  far  the  most 
numerous.  The  teeth  of  sharks,  which  are  so  numerous, 
and  of  which  I  procured  many  species,  lie  in  greater  num. 
bers  at  the  bottom  of  the  higher  and  newer  deposits. 
They  should  be  regarded  here  as  characteristic  only  of 
the  oldest  formations  in  which  they  are  found.  Their 
hardness  and  form  favors  very  much  this  removal  from  the 
older  to  the  newer  rocks,  wherever  the  latter  derive  a  por- 
tion of  their  materials  from  the  former. 

§  74.  Some  of  the  eocene,  as  well  as  the  miocene,  beds, 
contain  numerous  bones ; — these  are  generally  broken — 
even  the  thickest  are  broken  to  pieces,  some  six  or  eight 
inches  in  length ; — thus ,  the  femur  of  a  saurian,  one 
and  a  half  inches  in  diameter,  was  broken  into  three 
pieces — the  ribs  of  a  whale  into  pieces  about  eight  inches 
long.  In  these  fractures,  we  observe  the  spicula  of  bone, 
still  sharp,  and  never  rounded  or  worn.  These  fragments 
are  found  embedded  with  delicate  unbroken  shells — a  fact 
which  throws  considerable  obscurity  upon  the  causes 
which  have  broken  them  ; — for  it  does  not  appear,  irorn 
any  phenomena,  that  these  beds  are  subjected  to  a  disturb- 
ance, or  to  a  force,  since  deposited  in  the  beds  in  which 
the'  now  repose,  which  could  possibly  break  such  strong 
bones  into  such  short  pieces;  especially  when  delicate 
shells  are  presented  entire.  And  it  does  not  appear  that 
they  have  been  subjected  to  attrition, — to  the  action  of 
waves  or  stones. 


106 


§  75.  It  has  been  generally  supposed,  that  the  bones  of 
the  whale,  and  mastodon,  are  found  in  the  superficial  cov- 
erings,— in  those  beds  which  are  of  the  same  age  with 
those  at  the  North. 

Now,  the  mastodon  is  found  in  the  fresh  water  marl  of 
New  York,  and  other  localities  ;  or  in  beds  which  repose 
upon  that  stratum  called  drift;  and  which  is  entirely 
wanting  here.  But,  in  North  Carolina,  they  are  found  in 
the  miocene,  or  older  pliocene.  The  species  of  mastodon 
seems  to  be  the  one  which  is  found  in  New  York. 

The  question  comes  up,  are  these  Southern  beds  of  the 
same  age  with  the  fresh  water  marl  beds  of  the  North  ? 

The  latter  are  regarded  as  post  pliocene.  The  bones  of 
the  horse  and  deer  are  also  found  in  the  same  beds  with 
the  mastodon,  and  belong  to  the  same  age.  I  procured 
a  grinder  of  the  horse,  at  Greenville,  in  the  sandy  strata, 
just  above  the  miocene  marl.  All  the  extinct  deer  and 
oxen,  in  New  York,  are  found,  also,  in  the  fresh  water 
marls;  associated  with  the  freshwater  shells;  the  species 
of  which  are  now  living  in  our  lakes  and  ponds ; — and 
yet,  the  quadrupeds,  in  both  formations — one  in  the  South, 
the  other  in  the  North — are  all  entirely  extinct. 

If  it  should  turn  out,  that  the  mastodon  in  the  North 
Carolina  marls  is  a  species,  specifically  different  from  that 
of  the  fresh  water  marls  of  the  North,  the  case  would  not 
involve  the  question  of  comparative  age  of  the  beds  in  which 
they  occur.  If  the  species  are  the  same,  it  is  difficult  to 
reconcile  the  fact  with  the  present  views  of  Geologists  upon 
that  subject ;  the  age  of  deposits  as  deduced  from  their  fos- 
sils. 

§  76.  It  is  impossible  to  define  at  this  time,  the  limits  of 
the  eocene  beds  It  is  difficult  to  sub-divide  the  formation 
clearly,  though  it  appears,  that,  it  admits  of  the  same  di- 
vision, as  in  Alabama  and  Mississippi— the  cherty  portion 
beneath,  and  the  consolidated  marl,  or  the  marl  stone  above. 
But  this  part  furnishes  very  few  fossils.  There  is  still  a 


107 


mass,  quite  sandy,  similar  in  outward  appearance  to  the 
green  sand,  which  forms  a  feature,  which  should  not  be 
overlooked,  in  making  the  natural  division  of  the  strata* 
For  agricultural  purposes,  the  best  beds  are  the  marl  stones ; 
or  those  immediately  beneath,  which  are  sprinkled  with 
fragments  of  coprolites.  When  first  removed  from  their 
beds,  they  are  soft,  and  easily  crushed.  When  they  have 
been  exposed  to  the  atmosphere,  and  have  lost  their  water, 
they  become  hard,  and  crush  with  difficulty.  They  may 
perhaps  answer  a  good  purpose  in  building  and  construe, 
lion. 


THE  GREEN  SAND  AND  ITS  GEOLOGICAL  RE- 
LATION. 

§  77.  A  substance  which  is  well  known  to  every  person, 
in  the  form  and  under  the  name  of  chalk,  is  a  rock  which 
has  given  the  name  to  the  system,  of  which  the  green  sand 
is  a  member.  But  the  chalk  itself  does  not  exist  in  the 
United  States.  And  the  system,  to  which  the  green  sand 
belongs,  has  its  principal  representative,  in  the  inferior  or 
oldest  deposits.  While  no  true  chalk  is  found  in  the  United 
States,  possessing  the  characters  of  the  writing  chalk  of 
Europe,  there  are  still  deposits,  which  nearly  correspond 
in  age,  wilh  it.  This  view  is  supported  by  the  numerous 
fossils,  which  certain  beds  contain,  identical  with  those  of 
the  chalk  of  Europe, 


108 


This  formation  is  very  extensive  in  the  United  States. 
From  New-Jersey,  South,  to  Alabama,  it  is  one  of  the  most 
continuous  deposits. 

In  North-Carolina,  it  is  concealed  by  the  soil,  except  in 
favored  positions.  Upon  the  Cape-Fear,  and  its  tributaries, 
it  is  probably  better  exposed,  and  more  accessible,  than  at 
any  point,  known  to  me,  farther  North. 

It  consists  of  a  series  of  beds,  mostly  sandy,  alternating 
with  a  few  inconsiderable  beds  of  argillaceous  sand,  colored 
with  chloritine  matter.  There  are  beds  along  the  green 
sandy  formation,  which  are  calcareous,  and  which  I  now 
class  with  the  eocene;  but  which  may  hereafter  furnish 
facts,  which  will  place  those  calcareous  beds  in  the  creta- 
ceous system.  These  calcareous  beds,  however,  are  desti- 
tute of  many,  if  not  all,  the  characteiistic  fossils  of  the 
green  sand,  or  cretaceous  system,  unless  the  single  species 
of  ammonite  should  prove  to  be  one  -of  them  ;  though,  I 
believe  it  will  constitute  a  new  species. 

$  78.  The  green  sand  beds  are  not  distinguishable 
from  the  eocene,  by  the  presenceof  I  he  green  matter,  which 
has  given  it  this  name,  as  it  is,  also,  quite  common  in  the 
overlying  beds.  This  formation  is  beneath  the  shell  marl, 
which  contains  those  large  scollops,  and  generally  with 
beds,  which  are  composed  of  aggregations  of  shells,  closely 
resembling  those  living  bordering  on  the  Atlantic.  The 
beds,  of  green  sand  may,  however,  be  known  by  the 
presence  of  a  cylindrical  fossil,  of  a  yellowish  color,  and 
which  is  3  inches  or  more  in  length,  and  tapering  to  a  con- 
ical point  at  one  end.  When  unbroken,  it  has  a  conical 
cavity  at  the  other  end.  It  is  called  by  s  >me  a  thunder 
bolt.  Its  name  is  belemnite  It  occurs  upon  the  Cape 
Fear,  at  Sykes'  landing,  some  distance  below  Black  Rock, 
and  it  should  be  found  at  the  latter  place  also.  Another 
fossil  which  is  very  common  is  the  exogyra  costata.  It 
is  something  like  a  thick  rounded  oyster  shell.  This  is 
abundant  at  Black  Rock. 


109 


1  do  not  attempt,  at  this  time,  to  speak  of  the  extent  or  dis- 
tribution of  this  lonnition  or  its  thickness.  But,  I  wish  it 
should  be  known,  that  it  is  an  important  rock;  that  it  is  one 
of  the  best  fertilizers,  among  the  mineral  manures.  I  have 
spoken  of  the  locality  at  Black  Rock,  as  easy  of  access,  and 
probably,  other  places  below  may  be  equally  so.  It  was, 
in  connection  with  rocks  of  this  size,  that  beds,  rich  in 
phosphate  of  lirne  were  discovered  in  England,  only  a 
few  years  since,  which  have  been  a  source  of  immense 
profit,  to  the  proprietors  or  owners. 

This  formation  extends  South  of  Wilmington,  more  than 
twenty  miles;  but,  generally,  lies  concealed  beneath  a  thick 
coveringfof  sand  and  clay,  and  vegetable  debris  At  Rocky 
Hill,  it  has  been  known  for  many  years  Nine  miles  from 
Wilmington,  upon  the  Railroad,  the  green  sand  is  twenty 
feet  from  the  surface.  Where  the  strata  of  green  sand  are 
exposed,  in  a  vertical  section,  the  surface  is  worn  into  un- 
dulations ;  and  exhibits  in  consequence  of  the  wearing  ac- 
tion of  water,  which  has  passed  over,  rounded  ridges,  alter- 
nating regularly,  with  depressions.  Several  in  succession 
occur  upon  Dr.  Togno's  plantation  three  miles  North  of 
Wilmington. 

As  yet,  the  inferior  part  of  this  rock  has  not  been  opened 
in  this  State.  It  rests  probably  upon  the  granite ;  but 
what  composes  the  lower  mass  is  unknown.  It  may  yet 
turn  out,  that  the  mass  of  pebbles,  which  border  the  series 
of  tertiary,  upon  the  west,  pass  beneath  the  green  sand,  and 
belong  to  it,  rather  than  to  the  eocene,  where  I  have  placed 
it. 


110 


CONCLUDING  REMARKS  UPON  THE  AGRICUL- 
TURE OF  THE  LOWER  COUNTIES. 

While  a  bountiful  use  ol  manures  is  one  of  the  main 
instruments  of  success,  in  agriculture,  there  are  others, 
which  cannot  be  left  unemployed  The  remainder  may  be 
comprised,  under  the  head  of  tillage.  Proper  tillage  is 
necessary,  to  prepare  the  way,  for  the  action  of  manures. 
When  the  plow  has  not  broken  the  turf,  or  the  harrow 
pulverized  and  leveled  the  surface,  these  fertilizers  are 
left,  comparatively,  inert.  When  the  land  is  heavy  and 
impervious,  the  roots  of  plants  remain  unsupplied  with 
nutriment.  Where  the  hoe  is  neglected,  weeds  will  choke 
the  corn  and  cotton,  and  consume  the  nutriment.  Where 
water  stands  upon  the  surface,  then,  the  corn,  is  dwarfed 
and  yellowed  by  cold.  Tillage,  then,  consists  in  the  use  of 
the  plough,  the  harrow,  the  roller,  and  the  hoe,  and  cultiva- 
tor.— The  drain  comes  in,  to  complete  the  work  of  a  per- 
feet  system  of  tillage.  That  makes  the  other  modes  effec- 
tual and  perfect.  I  might  dwell  upon  each  instrument  of 
tillage,  and  point  out  the  nature  and  effect  of  each  oper- 
ation— but  I  choose,  now,  to  limit  my  remarks,  to  ttoe 
draining  of  soils. 


Ill 


DRAINING. 

The  experience  of  the  most  intelligent  of  the  agricul- 
tural profession,  in  this  country,  and  in  Europe,  is  highly 
favorable  to  draining.  Supported  as  this  agricultural 
measure  is  by  expsrience,  and  sustained  by  chemical  and 
physical  principles,  it  seems  to  me,  that  one  word  should 
be  said,  in  recommending  the  practice,  to  farmers  of  North 
Carolina.  I  hive  no  reference  here,  to  the  swamp  lands 
of  the  State,  or  wet  lands  generally  ;  there  can  be  but  one 
opinion,  as  to  the  necessity  of  draining  such  lands,  anywhere. 
But  my  remarks  are  intended  for  those  uplands,  and  mea- 
dows, which  are  always  in  a  condition  to  be  cultivated; 
those  from  which  the  farmer  has  taken  both  corn,  hay  and 
cotton,  and  which  do  not  present  any  very  remarkable  ne- 
cessity of  the  measure  to  the  eye;  unless  it  be  a  preserva- 
tion of  surface  water  for  many  days  after  a  rain  or  showers. 
Leaving  out  of  view  the  sandy  lands  of  the  Atlantic  slope, 
it  will  be  found  that  there  is,  in  all  the  red  soils  of  the  State* 
a  very  strong  affinity  for  water  ; — or,  what  is  bette  r  ex- 
pressed when  I  say,  that  it  holds  water  too  long  in  the 
Spring.  The  effect  of  this  fact  is  to  delay  the  Spring 
work  ; — to  postpone  the  time  when  it  may  be  plowed  and 
planted.  This  is  an  important  matter;  for  I  think  I  shall 
be,  and  am,  in  fact,  sustained  in  the  position,  that  a  good 
harvest  is  generally  dependent  upon  early  planting.  It 
may  be  called  in  question  in  the  South,  where  long  seasons 
are  the  order  of  the  day  ;  but,  when  it  is  considered  that 
all  plants  obey  the  seasons,  and  acquire  habits  from  the 
impress  of  the  seasons,  the  rule  will  hold  good  for  the  South 
as  well  as  the  North  : — that  more  may  be  expected  from 
early,  than  late  planting.  The  obstacle  in  the  way  is  Uie 
condition  of  the  soil ; — it  is  wet,  and,  therefore,  cold.  It 


112 


is  not  so  much  that  the  genial  warmth  of  the  sun  is  want- 
ing: but  this  warmth  has  to  be  expended,  first,  in  evapora- 
ting a  superabundance  of  water,  or  in  drying  the  surface. 
Now,  if  this  water,  which  keeps  the  surface  cold,  is  allowed 
to  dram  through  the  soil,  and  to  be  carried  off  by  drains, 
the  genial  warm.h  of  the  sun  administers,  at  once,  to  the 
end  so  much  wished,  ike  immediate  warming  of  the  soil. 
The  principle  is  obvious  and  well  settled.  The  application 
which  I  wish  to  make,  is,  to  the  lands  which  are  regarded 
as  tillable,  and  capable  of  producing  very  good  returns  ;  but, 
after  all,  they  do  not  give  those  returns  which  the  labor 
expended  seems  to  demand. 

I  design,  in  these  remarks,  to  call  the  attention  of  planters 
to  the  question  of  draining,  and  then  leave  the  matter  for 
their  consideration.  I  state  the  object  to  be,  to  secure  an 
early  planting  ;  though  the  benefits  derived  are  not  confined 
to  that  single  result.  The  planter  may  experiment  upon  one 
acre.  Drain  one  acre  well ;  and  then  compare  the  con- 
dition of  the  soil  of  that  acre,  in  April,  with  an  undrained 
acre  adjacent  to  it. 

When  I  speak  of  draining.  I  have  no  reference  to  open 
ditches ; — not  that  they  are  without  t  eir  advantages. 
®pen  ditches,  upon  the  slopes  of  many  plantations,  woul^i 
be  ruinous.  I  mean,  by  ditching,  a  three  foot  drain  laid  in 
tile  or  stone,  and  covered.  A  drain,  properly  laid,  will  not 
wash,  or  be  undermined  ; — indeed,  they  will  save  the  sur- 
face fr>m  gullies,  and  those  dead  patches,  too  common  in 
the  South. 


113 


COAL  FIELDS  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA. 


$  78.  Various  opinions  have  been  expressed  concerning 
the  Coal  Fields  of  this  State.  Some,  whose  opinions  are 
entitled  to  respect,  speak  unfavorably  of  their  value  and 
importance.  Others,  on  the  contrary,  entertain  a  high 
opinion  of  their  value  Parties  entertaining  these  discord- 
ant opinions  have  not  embraced  them  without  facts  which 
favor  their  own  views,  respectively. 

Hence,  when  it  became  my  duly  to  enter  upon  an 
examination,  as  the  Geologist  of  the  State,  from  whom  it 
was  expected  that  the  questior.s  at  issue  would  undergo  a 
careful  scrutiny,  I  determined,  therefore,  to  put  those 
questions  to  a  strict  test.  It  appeared  to  me  that  the  first 
point  to  be  established  was;  that  the  series  of  rocks  in  which 
coal  was  known  to  exist,  actually  form,  of  themselves,  such 
a  succession  of  rocks  as  to  entitle  them  to  the  rank  of 
the  regular  coal-bearing  deposits,  analogous,  at  least,  to 
what  has  been  determined  in  other  fields,  where  coal  con- 
stitutes a  part  of  the  series  themselves. 

To  determine  this  single  point,  required  a  detailed  examin- 
ation of  all  the  members  of  the  group, — especially,  of  those 
deposited  in  the  immediate  proximity  of  the  coal  itself.  It 
is,  however,  never  expected  that  every  member  of  a  group 
will  be  present  in  all  localities  ;  or  that  they  will,  if  present, 
possess  the  same  characters  as  to  color,  thickness,  minera* 

8 


114 


composition,  &c.  Still,  certain  characteristics  will  be  found 
m  common  ;  and  their  determination  became  the  first  subject 
for  examination. 

In  order  that  my  readers  may  be  put  in  the  way  of  form- 
ing opinions  for  themselves,  I  propose,  first,  to  speak  of  the 
common  characteristics  of  a  coal  field  ;  what  rocks  belong  to 
a  coal  field  ;  and  what  position  they  occupy  ;  and  what 
fossils  they  should  furnish. 

The  coal  fields  of  our  own  country  are  made  up  of  the 
following  succession  of  rocks  :  — 

1.  Limestone,  called   the  carboniferous  lime- 
stone ; — variable,  however,  and  not  always 
present. 

2.  Conglomerates  ; — made  up  of  rounded  peb- 
bles, interstratified,  it  may  be,  with  coarse 
and  fine  sands. 

3.  Sandstone,  of  various  colors   and    degrees 
of  fineness- 

4.  Black  slates  ;  or  slates  of  various  colors. 

5.  Fire  clay  and  coal. 

6.  Argillaceous  oxyde  and  carbonate  of  iron  ; 
variable  in  quantity  ;  generally  nodular. 

7.  Sandstones,  and  repetitions  of  the  foregoing 
rocks. 

The  thickness  which  the  series  attain  is  variable  ; — in 
some  it  exceeds  14,000  feet. 

§  79.  The  position,  in  the  general  series  of  the  coal-bearing 
rocks,  is  above  what  is  known  as  Devonian,  and  extends 
upwards  to  those  known  as  the  Oolite  recks,  including  the 
latter.  They  occupy  a  position  not  far  from  the  middle 
of  the  series  of  sediments,  or  hydroplastic  rocks, — the  water- 
formed  or  water-moulded  rocks.  There  seemed  to  have 
been  a  period  fitted  to  the  production  of  those  plants  which 
form  the  coal  itself. 


115 


Observation  sustains  the  view  now  prevalent  among  Geol- 
ogists, that  this  middle  period  furnishes  the  best  workable 
beds  ;  and  that,  neither  below,  nor  above,  though  the  sedi- 
ments are  very  thick,  do  they,  bear  coal.  This  conclusion, 
I  have  said,  is  the  result  of  observation,  extended  over  all  the 
accessible  portions  of  the  earth's  crust.  We  do  not  assign  a 
cause.  It  is  the  fact ,  which  is  important.  Still,  the  fact, 
itself,  implies  that  the  condition  of  the  atmosphere,  its  tem- 
perature and  humidity,  favored  the  production  of  vegetables 
of  those  kinds  ;  and  in  sufficient  abundance  to  give  origin 
to  the  coal.  t 

More  than  half  a  century  has  elapsed  since  attentien  has 
been  given  to  the  coal-bearing  rocks  ;  and  no  new  country 
has  been  visited,  but  the  subject  has  received  attention.  The 
time  has  passed  by  when  persons  who  have  studied  the 
subject  require  to  be  enlightened  upon  the  questions  con 
cerning  the  coal  rocks. 

What  I  wish  to  inculcate,  is,  that  the  position  which  these 
rocks  occupy  is  not  theoretical;  but  has  been  determined 
by  observations,  extended  over  a  large  portion  of  the  earth's 
crust.  The  Siberian  rocks,  for  example,  are  found  in  Ame- 
rica, England,  and  Russia  ;  but  they  furnish  no  coal. — 
So  it  may  be  said  of  the  Devonian,  which  is  found  in  these 
and  other  countries  ;  and  yet  110  coal  is  found  in  this 
system . 

§  80.  The  thickness  of  all  the  systems  of  coal-bearing 
rocks  is  great.  Room  and  space  are  thereby  given  for  con- 
taining coal  ;  and  time,  also,  for  the  growth  of  the  material 
which  is  to  be  converted  into  coal.  The  senes.in  Pennsyl- 
vania are  several  thousand  feet  thick. 

T:ie  Geological  position  of  the  coal-bearing  rocks  of  this 
State  is  another  point  which  required  attention.  As  it  is 
conceded  that  they  are  not.  of  the  age  of  the  Pennsylvania 
coal  rocks,  we  have  to  look  about  for  those  which  we  may 
satisfy  ourselves  are  of  the  same  age  as  those  in  this  State, 


116 


and  which  have  been  proved  to  contain  a  large  supply  of 
coal.  We  are  not  left  without  examples  in  point,  and  which 
establish  an  important  fact,  that  rocks  newer  than  those 
referred  to  are  coal-bearing.  I  allude  to  those  of  the  Rich- 
mond coal  field  ;  which  have  been  shown,  by  Professor 
William  B.  Rodgers,  to  be  of  the  age  of  the  Lias, — of  an  age 
newer  than  the  rocks  of  Pennsylvania. 


§  81.  This  coal-field,  though  by  no  means  extensive, 
when  compared  with  the  older,  to  which  allusion  has  been 
made,  has  been  productive  and  profitable  ;  and  furnishes 
seams  which  are  remarkable  for  their  thickness — a  seam,  for 
example,  which  is  no  less  than  forty  feet  thick. 

I  do  not  regard  this  great  thickness  as  a  favorable  feature  ; 
but,  as  an  example  of  the  accumulation  of  vegetable  matter, 
in  this  period,  which  proves  a  geological  fact  of  great  conse- 
quence,— the  adaptednessof  the  climate  of  this  period  to  pro- 
duce the  material  which  has  been  changed  into  coal. 

We  have,  in  the  periods  prior  to  the  coal  of  the  Upper  Appa- 
lachian rocks,  negative  proof  that  the  climate  was  not  adapted 
to  such  results  ; — for  they  contain  no  coal.  But,  as  we  ap- 
proach the  carboniferous  system,  we  see  signs  of  preparation  ; 
plants  appear,  which  were  allied  to  those  which  characterised 
the  coal  period.  These  increase,  till,  finally,  they  reach 
the  maximum,,  in  point  of  numbers,  in  this  particular  period, 
when  we  find  all  the  necessary  materials  and  circumstances 
for  the  formation  of  coal  ;  and  it  is  not  until  we  reach  the 
rocks  called  carboniferous,  that  it  is  found. 

Which  succeed  the  latter? — or  which  can  be  proved  to 
heve  been  deposited  duving  the  subsequent  periods? 

Again  ; — the  coal- bearing  rocks,  as  they  occupy  the  same 
relative  position,  and  the  same  relations  as  to  time,  may  be 
supposed  to  contain  a  peculiar  class  of  plants,  and  of  animals. 
All  this  is  true ;  and  it  is  as  much  expected  to  find  certain 
plants  and  animals,  in  this  series,  as  to  find  the  sandstones 


117 


and  slates.  These  facts  are  well  known  by  miners,  who 
are  well  informed  ;  and  they  avail  themselves  of  the  facts 
to  guide  their  examinations. 

These  facts  are  so  constant,  that  capitalists  do  not  hesitate 
to  invest  money  where  the  characteristics  of  a  coal-field  have 
been  determined. 

The  Appalachian  coal-fields,  of  which  the  S.ate  of  Penn- 
sylvania forms  a  part,  are  about  nine  hundred  miles  long, 
and  about  two  hundred  miles  wide  ;  and  yet,  throughout 
this  great  extent  of  territory,  the  general  characteristics  are 
found  the  same.  And  the  same  may  be  said  of  the  Illinois 
and  Michigan  coai-fields. 

§  82-  Now,  the  application  of  these  facts  to  the  coal-fields 
of  Nor;  h  Carolina.  The  members  composing  the  series,  in 
which  coal  is  known  to  exist,  may  be  arranged  as  follows  : — 

1.  Conglomerate,  made  up  of  rounded  pebbles 
of  quartz,  and   other  hard  rocks;  united  and 
held  together,  in  the  condition  of  a  rock. 

2.  Sandstones,  of  different  colors,  mostly  red, 
of  various  degrees  of  fineness. 

3.  Slate  ;  black,  and  green,  and  mottled. 

4.  Fire-clay  and  coaL 

5.  Argillaceous  oxyde  and  carbonate  of  iron, 
in  nodules. 

7.  A  succession  of  the  series  ;  and  finally  ter- 
minating in  heavy  beds,  and  olive-colored 
sandstones. 

In  the  foregoing  series,  we  find,  on  comparison,  an  agree- 
m  nt  with  those  of  other  coal-fields — the  conglomerate,  the 
sa  Istone,  shales,  fire-clay,  and  nodules,  of  argil  laceous-oxyde 
of  i.-on.  All  of  which,  when  put  together,  render  it  probable 
th; :<  the  seiie?  actually  form  a  coal-field  ; — or  a  series,  which 
are  truly  carboniferous,  or  coal-bearing  rocks. 


118 


The  members,  then,  which  may  be  regarded  as  common — 
and,  indeed,  essential,  to  a  coal  bearing  series, — are  present 
in  the  North  Carolina  formation  ; — but,  in  order  to  give  just 
confidence  in  them,  1  do  not  deem  it  necessary  to  prove  that 
they  are  of  the  same  age  as  the  Richmond  coal-fields.  It  may 
be,  that  the  Richmond  I  eds  are  not  of  the  age  of  the  lower 
Oolite  •  it  muy  be,  that  they  belong  to  ihe  Permian*  or 
New  Bed. 

All  the  fields  furnish  one  or  two  fossils  in  common — a  kind 
of  proof  which  is  of  some  value,  as  far  as  it  goes. 

The  question  which  !  attempted  to  solve,  in  a  way  which 
may  be  regarded  as  independent  of  an  actual  exploration  of 
the  coal-seams,  was  decided  favorably  ; — all  the  facts  going 
to  prove  a  distinct  coal  series  ;  though  not  of  the  age  of  the 
Pennsylvaaia  coal  ;  but  belonging  to  one  during  which  coal 
has  been  abundantly  produced. 

So,  when  the  inquiry  is  taken  up,  in  dctnil,  though  still 
pursuing  a  mode  independent  of  the  facts  accompanying  the 
known  seams  themselves,  we  shall  corne  to  the  same  results. 
The  slates,  ihe  fire-clay,  iron,  and  the  fossils,  all  point  to  the 
existence  of  coal. 


§  83.  Probably  more  money  has  been  wasted  in  searching 
for  coal,  than  any  other  mineral.  It  is  no  uncommon  thing 
for  foreign  miners,  who  have  just  skill  enough  to  take  down 
a  breast  of  ore,  to  induce  the  expenditure  of  capital  in  sink- 
ing shafts,  in  any  black  slate,  without  the  least  regard  to  the 
presence  of  coa'  The  consequence  has  been,  that  all  the 
money  expended  in  the  operation  has  been  lost.  In  New 
York,  it  has  been  one  of  the  most  common  mining  failures. 
Wherever  black  slate  appears,  it  is  perforated,  somewhere, 
with  a  shaft  in  search  of  coal.  All  these  explorations,  in  that 
State,  have  been  in  the  Siberian  system,  below  the  coal- 
bearing  rocks.  One  of  the  great  benefits  of  the  New  York 
Survey,  was,  the  determination  that  there  was  no  coaljhere  ; 


119 

and  it  has  put  a  stop  to  the  useless  expenditure  of  money  in 
this  way.  All  these  mistakes  and  errois  were  committed 
from  inattention  to  the  special  and  general  characteristics  of 
a  coal-fi<  Id. 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  THE  DEEP  RIVER 
COAL  FIELD. 


§  84.  The  Deep  River  coal  field  is  in  the  form  of  a  trough  ! 
The  inferior  rocks  extend  farther  than  the  superioi .  They 
may  be  regarded  as  beginning  in  Granville  County,  in  a 
wedge- form,  or  pointed  mass.  The  northwest  and  wes* 
outcrop  runs,  at  first,  west  of  south  ;  and  passes  through  a 
part  of  Wake,  and  sends  up  a  short  arm  to  within  three  miles 
of  Chapel  Hill. 

The  direction  of  the  outcrop  has  gradually  changed  to 
south,  50°  west.  This  direction  is  very  nearly  preserved  to 
the  South  Carolina  line.  The  outcrop  is  about  six  miles 
west  of  Carthage. 

In  this  coal-field,  the  uplift  has  been  made  upon  the  north- 
west side.  Its  line  of  demarkation  is  distinct  ; — while,  upon 
the  southeast  side,  there  is  no  outcrop.  All  that  is  in  view, 
is,  the  superior  rocks,  still  dipping  southwest, — their  lower 
edges  being  concealed  beneath  a  thick  mass  of  soil. 


120 


The  dip  is  slightly  variable  ; — being,  on  the  south  side  of 
Deep  River,  south  60°  east.  North  of  the  river,  it  is  south 
50°  east.  At  the  easterly  end,  at  Farmville,  south  10°  west. 
At  Hornsville,  south  45°  west.  These  last  were  taken  from 
the  coal-slates,  where  a  change  has  taken  place,  which  is 
due  to  the  position  of  the  outer  and  easterly  edge  of  the 
trough,  as  it  is  turning  westwardly  ;  and  where  the  uplifting 
forces  have  acted  upon  the  other  side,  the  angle  of  dip 
varies  from  10°,  in  the  upper  strata  of  the  sandstone,  to 
25°  in  the  inferior  beds  ;  and  may,  probably,  exceed  30°, 
at  some  points  of  the  outer  edge,  near  the  rocks  upon  which 
they  repose. 

The  lithological  characters  of  the  whole  system  furnish 
considerable  variety.  But  they  may  be  classed  as  conglom- 
erates ;  sandstones,  soft  and  hard,  grey,  red,  and  variegated, 
or  mottled  ;  and  green  and  black  slates  ;  with  certain  subor- 
dinate beds. 

The  coal  seams  of  Deep  River  may  be  described,  under 
three  grand  divisions,  proceeding  from  the  inferior,  to  the 
superior  beds. 

1.  Inferior  conglomerates,    and    sandstones. 

below  the  green  and  black  slates. 

2.  Black  slates,  with  their  subordinate  beds 

and  seams. 

3.  ^Sandstones,  soft  and  hard,    with  the  free- 

stones,   grindstone  grits,    and  superior 
conglomerates. 

§  85  The  lowest  arid  oldest,  as  appears  from  the  fore- 
going  subdivisions,  is  a  conglomerate.  It  is  formed  of 
rounded  quartz  pebbles,  derived  from  the  neighboring  rocks, 
the  gold  slates;  and  contains  the  entire  series  of  minerals, 
which  they  contain.  The  most  conspicuous  part  of  the 
conglomerate  is  quartz.  This  minenil  is  rounded  by  attri. 
lion,  and  occurs  in  oval  masses,  rirely  spherical,  standing  out 
of  the  rock,  in  strong  relief  These  pebbles  have,  in  pro- 


121 


cess  of  time,  become  consolidated,  without  the  aid  of  any 
cementing  substance,  and  they  are  so  strongly  held  together, 
that  in  breaking  the  rock,  they  are  broken  through,  with- 
out being  broken  out,  or  loosened  from  their  b^-ds. 

The  origin  of  these  pebbles  is  evidently  in  the  slatei, 
and  from  the  quartz  seams  in  the  slates.  This  rock  being 
schistose,  and  largely  intermixed  with  talc  and  mica,  and 
frequently  thoroughly  impregnated  with  pyrites,  is  subject 
both  to  disintegration  and  decomposition.  The  quartz  by 
these  processes  is  set  free,  or  disengaged  from  its  matrix  — 
When  exposed  to  the  action  of  waves  upon  a  beach,  it  is 
rounded,  and  while  still  in  their  beds  are  subjected  to  pres- 
sure which  results  in  the  formation  of  this  interesting  and 
curious  rock. 

§  86.  The  conglomerates,  in  their  best  and  perfect  forms, 
are  free  from  soft  interstratified  matter,  which  would  dimin- 
ish their  solidity,  and  hence,  the  mass  is  exceedingly  well 
adapted  for  grinding  corn,  when  properly  prepared.  The 
beds  are  two  feet,  and  sometimes  three  feet  thick.  The  su- 
perior are  less  solid  or  consolidated  ;  the  lower,  in  their 
lithological  characters,  are  the  perfect  millstone  grits  of  geol- 
ogists. Between  the  thick  bedded  masses,  there  intervenes 
thinner  and  less  perfect  layers,  composed  of  finer  materials. 
These  are  perishable,  and  are  unsuited  to  the  purposes  to 
which  the  harder  are  applied. 

The  colors  are  gray,  brown,  and  red  ;  generally,  the  con- 
glomerates are  gray.  They  have  not  furnished  fossils,  except 
lignite,  which  sometimes  has  been  found  near  these  lower 
masses  ;  but  even  this  is  never  found,  except  in  the  softer 
portions. 

The  whole  thickness  of  the  inferior  conglomerates  do  not 
probably  exceed  sixty  feet.  As  a  whole,  the  mass  is  made  up 
of  rounded  pubbles  in  beds  of  variable  thickness,  and  separ- 
ated by  finer  and  softer  varieties. 

This  mass  rests  immediately  upon  the  stratified  pyrocrys- 
talline  rocks, — the  talcost!  slates,  hornblende,  gneiss  with  their 
subordinate  beds,  and  veins  of  quartz.  They  rest  upon  the 


122 


edges  of  the  inferior  and  older  rocks — which  proves,  that  tho 
inferior  had  been  elevated  more  or  less,  prior  to  the  deposition 
of  this  system,  and  sufficiently  to  raise  up  their  edges  upon 
which  the  conglomerates  rest. 

§  87.  The  sandstones  succeed  the  conglomerates,  in  the 
ascending  order.  They  consist  of  variously  colored  strata, 
red,  gray,  and  olive.  Their  texture  is  not  uniform.  Exten- 
sive beds  are  made  up  of  the  softest  of  materials,  and  hence, 
are  constantly  undergoing  decomposition,  and  frequently,  it 
is  difficult  to  distinguish  the  rock  from  that  which  has  already 
become  soil. 

The  description  of  a  seiies  of  beds  will  give  a  better  idea 
of  these  sandstones,  considered  as  parts  of  a  great  formation 
than  I  can  convey  by  any  other  mode.  The  following  sec- 
tion of  the  lower  sandstone  extends  North,  from  Evans' 
bridge,  about  three  miles,  to  its  junction,  \\ith  the  inferior 
rocks. 

1.  The  inferior  conglomerate  is  concealed  by 

soil. 

2.  Sandstone  which  may  be  called  a  hard  free- 

stone, dark  brown.  Near  this  mass,  and 
to  the  North,  the  gold  slates  appear,  which 
are  in  t  erst  ratified  with  hard  green  porphy- 
ries, alternating  with  fine  lalcose  slates. 

3.  Thick  bedded  brown  sandstones,  but  softer 

than  the  proceeding . 

4.  Gray   sandstones   or   freestones,  in    which 

some  beds  form  the  grindstone  grit. 

5.  Hard  red  sandstone. 

6.  Soft  red  sandstone,  forming  a  mass,  frequent- 

ly called  red  marl,  but  improperly. 

7.  Gray  and  olive  green  sandstones. 

§  88.  The  series,  then,  which  succeed  the  conglomerates 
are  made  up,  as  1  have  already  observed,  of  various  strata, 
some  hard,  others  soft.  The  predominant  color  is  red,  pas- 


123 


sing  iuto  brown.  The  gray,  and  (hose  tinged  slightly  brown, 
are  intersi ratified  with  the  former  ;  but  the  former  are  the 
most  common,  and  are  much  thicker  than  the  latter. 

§  89.  The  slates  rest  upon  the  sandstones,  I  have  just  des- 
cribed. These  slates  are  thin  bedded  strata. — They  arc  'en- 
der  and  easily  broken,  and  fall  into  angular  fragments,  but 
not  sufficiently  hard  to  form  a  flat  gravel,  and  hence,  from 
their  composition,  they  are  constantly  becoming  a  soil  wher- 
ever exposed  to  the  weather. 

The  beds  are  quite  uniform  in  their  mineral  characters, 
and  composition.  They  are  green  and  black  ;  rarely  red - 
but,  the  latter  arises  from  a  kind  of  bleaching,  which 
they  have  undergone,  by  exposure  to  the  weather. 

The  slate  may  be  described  as  consisting  of 

1.  Green  slates  adjoining  the  sandstones. 

2.  Black,  which  frequently  alternate  with  the 

green. 

3.  Calcareous  beds,  in  which  silica  predomin- 

ates, or  in  which  silica  forms  more  than, 
fifty  per  cent.  These  divide  the  slates 
into  two  parts  or  divisions. 

4.  Thin  beds  of  impure  black  limestone. 

The  coal,  fire  clay,  and  argillaceous  iron  ore,  belong 
to  this  division  of  the  formation,  and  the  whole  series  may  be 
described  as  consisting  of 

1.  Slates  of  various  colors. 

2.  Coal  seams,  accompanied  with  its  fire  clay, 

argillaceous  iron  stone. 

3.  In  proximity  to  the  coal,    an   impure  gray 

magnesia n  limestone  frequently  occcurs, 
to  which  succeeds  the  upper  sandstone. 

THE  FIRE  CLAY  is  a  mass  of  argillaceous  matter  ;  quite 
fine,  of  a  greenish  color.  Near  the  surface,  it  is  a  clay,  and 
easily  moulded,  or  cut  into  any  form  ;  but  at  the  depth  of 


124 


twenty-five  or  thirty  feet,  it  is  of! en  hard,  and  more  like 
stone  :  still,  by  exposure  to  the  weather,  it  becomes  soft  and 
shows  the  character  of  the  element  of  which  it  is  formed. 
It  is  often  traversed  by  roots  of  ancient  vegetables,  which 
gave  origin  to  the  coal. 

2.  IRON. — The  iron  occur  in  nodules,  or  concretions,  some 
of  which  will  weigh  between  three  and  four  hundred  pounds. 
It  is  the  common   argillaceous  oxyde,  mixed  with  the  carbo- 
nate.    It  does  not,  therefore,  form  a  regular  stratified  mass  ; 
but  seems  to  be   a  constant  associate  of  the  coal-seams. 

3.  THE  COAL  SEAMS. — There  are  fine  coal  seams  ;  the 
order  and  relation   of  which  to  the  other  beds  is  illustrated  by 
the  following  section  : — 

1.  The  first  indications  of  the  coal  seam  is  by 

the   appearance   of  micaceous   sandstone 
alternating  a  few  times  with  the  slates. 

2.  Fire  clay.     Its  greatest   thickness  is  about 

ten   feet.     A  bed  of  this  thickness     was 
perforated  by  Mr.  Campbell,  of  Moore  Co. 

3.  Coal  seam. 

4.  Slaty  beds,  with  argillaceous  iron  ore. 

It  seems  to  be  established  by  observation,  that  the  fine 
seams  of  coal  are  quite  constant. 

If  we  take  an  illustration  from  the  Parmville  and  Horn- 
ville  mines,  the  following  order  of  deposits  will  be  obser- 
ved :— 

1.  Shaly  sandstone,  with  fire  clay. 

2.  Seam  of  coal,  three  feet  thick. 

3.  Four  feet  sandstone. 

4.  One  foot  of  coal,  and  fire  clay  beneath. 

5.  Shale. 


125 


These  lower  beds  dip  southwest,  and  pass  beneath  the 
seams  of  coal  at  FarmviiJe,  which  are  upon  the  adjoining 
lot: 


6.  Coal,  three  feet  thick. 

7.  Fifteen  feet  of  slate. 

8.  Coal  seam  two  feet. 

9.  Slate  tea  inches. 

10.  Coal  seam  four  feet,  and  fire  clay. 

11.  Slate  of  various  colors  with  their  fossils. 

§  90.  There  seems  to  be  a  slight  variation  in  the  materials 
composing  the  coal  slates.  Thus  ; 

The  Taylor  mine  furnishes  the  following  section  : — 

1.  Slate  below-the  coal  seams. 

2.  Coal  seam  eighteen  to  thirty  inches. 

3.  Slate  three  to  five  inches. 

4.  Coal  two  and  a  half  to  three  feet. 

5.  Slate  ten  inches. 
0.  Coal  four  feet. 

7.  Fire   clay,   apparently   succeeded   by  gray 

sandstone  and  Slate. 

8.  Soil  ;  the  Taylor  mine  is  three  miles  west  of 
Farmville. 

The  eighteen  inch  coal  seam,  at  the  Taylor  mine,  has 
been  struck  ;  but  not  so  exposed,  as  to  determine  its  exact 
thickness. 

The  lower  seams  at  Farmville  are  found  at  the  Taylor 
mine,  which  shows  a  persistence  of  these  thin  seams,  which 
are  better  known  at  the  extreme  eastern  outcrop. 

The  seams,  at  the  Gulf,  are  supposed  to  corres  pond  very 
nearly  with  those  already  described. 

At  Willcox's,  still  farther  to  the  southwest,  the  seams  are 
not  so  easily  recognized,  as  the  openings  are  imperfectly 


126 


made,  and  were  filled  with  water,  when  I  visited  them. 
The  Wilcox  seams,  it  should  be  observed,  are  non- bitumin- 
ous. 

The  Murchison  seams,  at  the  outcrop,  con-lain  more  slate  ; 
but  the  seam  is  said  to  be  eight  or  nine  feet  thick.  The 
lower  seams  have  not  been  sought  for,  at  this  point. 

The  fact,  that  fire  ciay  overlies  the  highest  coal  seam,  at 
the  Taylor  mine,  indicates  the  existence  of  another  seam 
above  it.  And,  we  may  expect,  that  deeper  in  the  basin  or 
trough,  others  will  be  struck. 

Of  the  number  of  coal  seams,  then,  the  five  noticed  in  the 
section,  embrace  all  which  have  been  as  yet,  brought  to  light. 
I  shall  take  occasion,  to  give  my  views,  hereafter,  more  fully, 
of  the  prospects  of  this  coal  field. 

§91.  Slates  overlie  all  the  coal  seams.  Their  thickness 
above  them,  is  about  three  hundred  and  fifty  feet.  The  coal 
strata  lie  below  the  midst  of  Ihe  strata  beds.  The  strata 
above  the  coal  consist  of  greenish  slates,  with  hard  layers 
occasionally  alternating  with  them.  There  is,  then,  taking 
the  slates  as  a  whole,  a  great  sameness  in  their  appearance 
and  composition,  and  a  great  degree  of  uniformity  in  their 
thickness,  at  the  different  places,  where  they  have  been  ex- 
plored. From  this  fact,  it  follows,  that,  they  are  not  to  be 
regarded  as  subordinate  to  the  sandstone,  that  they  are  con- 
stituent parts  of  a  great  formation,  which  required  an  exten- 
ded period,  for  their  deposition. 

1  have  spoken  of  the  associated  coal  strata,  as  slates  ;  but, 
abroad,  a  formation  possessing  their  characters  would  be 
denominated  marly  of  marl  slate;  and  the  name  is  highly 
proper.  When  their  composition  and  liability  to  decomposition 
is  taken  into  the  account,  they  are  similar  to  marls,  having 
lime  as  a  constituent  part  of  their  composition 

In  adopting  the  term,  marl  slates.,  we  should  follow  the 
designation  of  the  English  and  German  authorities  ;  but,  as 
coal  is  a  constant  accompaniment  of  the  slates,  it  seems  as  well 
to  call  them  coal  slates.  It  is  an  important  fact,  which 


127 


should  be  remembered,  that  the  coal  is  associated  with  these 
slates  ;  that,  although  the  sandstones,  above  and  below,  are 
much  thicker,  and  mineralogically,  more  important,  still, 
they  contain  no  coal  ;  there  is  no  recurrence  of  slate  beds, 
which  can  be  regarded  as  repetitions  of  the  one  I  have  descri- 
bed. The  shaly  sandstones,  which  are  mostly  red,  some- 
times green,  but  never  black,  show  very  conclusively,  that, 
vegetable  matter  is  only  sparingly  disseminated  through  the 
beds,  and  that  the  conditions,  required  for  the  growth  of  coal 
plants,  were  not  repealed,  during  the  era  of  these  sandstones. 
This  fact  is  practical,  and  shows  in  what  part  of  the  system 
we  may  expect  to  find  coal. 

§  92.  I  have  refrained  from  speaking  of  certain  unimpor- 
tant beds,  which  have  been  regarded  by  many  as  coal  seams. 
I  allude  to  lignite  — which  is  found  in  the  sandstones,  just 
above  the  conglomerate.  It  consists,  merely,  of  trees,  of  the 
era  of  the  sandstones  which  have  been  converted  into  coal  ; 
and,  in  consequence  of  the  great  pressure  to  which  they  have 
been  subjected,  they  have  been  flattened,  and  made  to  assume 
the  form  of  a  thin  coal  seam. 

There  is  no  confidence  to  be  placed  in  these  thin  seams — 
either  as  seams,  or  as  indications  of  seams.  They  are  not 
coal  blossoms  ;  nor  beds  of  the  least  economical  importance. 
They  are  instructing,  as  sreolngical  facts.  They  furnish  UB 
examples  of  plants  growing  in  an  interesting  period  of  the 
earth's  history;  arid,  /is  historical  data,  which  record  the 
events  which  have  transpired  in  former  tunes,  they  are 
invaluable. 

lam  thus  particular  in  speaking,  in  this  place,  of  these 
unimportant  seams  of  li^aire,—  or  wood  changed  into  coal, 
still  retaining  its  structure, — for  the  purpose  of  saying  that 
they  are  of  no  value. 

There  is  a  still  -nore  important  point,  in  this  connection, 
which  should  be  spoken  of  :  Ii  is,  that  coal  occupies  certain 
positions  ;  and  I  would  not  allude  to  it  again,  in  this  place, 
were  it  not  that  searches  and  explorations  are  being  made, 


128 


at  the  present  time,  for  Coal  in  Lincoln  County , — a  field, 
which,  of  all  others  in  the  State,  presents  the  poorest  prospect 
for  finding  the  substance  sought. 

The  only  rocks  in  which  coal  will  ever  be  found,  in  North 
Carolina,  are  the  sandstones  and  slate  I  have  been  speaking 
of.  The  primary  slates,  though  they  may  be  dark  colored, 
and  even  black,  do  not  derive  their  color  from  vegetable 
matter  ;  but  from  fine  sulphur,  diffused  through  the  rock,  and 
\vhich  has  been  derived  from  the  decomposition  of  sulphuret 
of  iron.  Hence,  it  may  happen,  that  certain  black  slates 
may  exhibit  a  feeble  combustion  upon  the  fire, — it  is  no  un- 
common thing. 

The  fact  should  be  more  generally  known  in  the  commu- 
nity, that  coal  has  been  formed,  exclusively,  from  vegetable 
matter ;  and  that  coal  is  found  subordinate  to  certain  rocks. 
Any  well  informed  American  Geologist,  upon  hearing  a 
statement  respecting  the  locality  of  a  supposed  coal-bed,  can 
decide  the  question  at  once  j — at  least,  so  far  as  this  : — the 
probability  of  its  existence,  if  the  locality  is  in  a  district  of 
known  coal-bearing  rocks  ;  and  the  certainty  of  its  non-exist- 
ence in  parts  of  country  underlaid  by  rock  older  than  the 
Devonian  pystem. 

Lignite  beds  occur,  also,  in  the  tertiary  ;  and,  as  it.  appears, 
when  dried,  like  coal,  it  is  not  singulai  that  it  should  be  re- 
garded as  such.  My  attention  has  been  frequently  directed 
to  these  beds,  on  the  Cape  Fear  River,  by  individuals  who 
regarded  them  as  coal  beds  of  some  value. 

The  outlines  of  all  the  geological  system  are  now  toleta- 
bly  well  settled,  and  all  that  part  of  the  United  States,  wh;  h 
is  underlaid  with  Primary,  Taconic,  Siberian  or  Devon  n 
rocks,  are  totally  destitute  of  any  workable  beds  of  co  1. 
1  leave  out  of  view,  a  debateable  ground  ;  that  of  tl  er 

Devonian,  as  the  late  Richard  C.  Taylor   favored   :  v, 

that  some  of  the  lowest  and  oldest   coal  beds  may  U-         ad 
in  connection  with  that  system. 


129 

There  ure  two  modes  of  misleading  men,  in  this  mailer ; 
the  first  and  most  common  is  by  the  representation  of  Comiah 
and  o' her  European  miners,  who  are  out  of  woik,  or  who 
are  totally  ignorant  of  all  the  essential  characters  of  a  coal 
mine.  The  second,  is  from  the  representations  of  clairvoiy- 
ants.  To  a  sensible  man,  it  is  scarcely  necessary,  to  guard 
and  caution  him,  by  advice,  in  regard  to  the  latter.  Iu 
cither  case,  however,  it  is  proper  to  ask  proof;  for  it  is  a 
matter,  which  admits  of  proof, — visible  proof;  at  leas',  so 
far  as  probabilities  are  concerned.  There  is  evidence,  al- 
ways at  hand,  for  or  against.  When  there  is  evidence  for, 
it  will  be  proper  to  investigate  its  claims,  but  when  there  is 
no  evidence,  as  there  can  be  .one  in  all  the  rocks  older  and 
beneath  the  true  carboniferous,  no  ignorant  miner  nur  im- 
postor, who  pretends  to  look  into  a  stone,  should  be  allowed 
to  swindle  us. 


NOTE. — It  is  difficult  to  determine  the  number  of  seams  of 
coal  which  exist  in  this  system  of  rocks.  The  explorations 
by  boring  require  to  be  made,  on  the  line  of  out  croprf,  before 
the  number  can  be  determined.  <|ftve  have  already  been  ex- 
posed. But  as  the  Wilcox  veins  are  nearly  south  from  ^lur- 
ch ison's,  and  upon  one  side  of  the  out  crop  of  the  Horlun, 
Taylor  and  Farmville,  it  indicates  that  there  are  seams  still 
above  those,  and  near  the  junction  of  the  slate  with  the  up- 
per sand  stone.  The  Murchison  dips  in  a  direction  which 
will  carry  it  beneath  ihe  Wilc.»x  antlnacite  seams — unless 
there  is  an  uplift  which  has  brought  up  the  latter  from  a  great 
depth.  At  the  out  crop,  the  Wilcox  is  also  connected  with 
layers  of  sand  stone  and  lime  siuue,  which  do  not  elsewhere 
appear.  From  these  facts  it  may  be  reasonably  inferred  that 
the  coal  seams  are  more  numerous  than  has  usually  been 
supposed, 

9 


130 


QUALITY  OF  THE  DEEP  RIVER  COAL. 


i  93.  The  two  varieties  of  coal,  the  bituminous  and  semi- 
bituminous,  passing  into  anthracite,  are  known  in  this  coal- 
field. The  bituminous  is  scarcely  equalled  for  fineness 
and  excellency,  in  this  country,  and  it  has  been  said  b*  a 
gentleman,  who  is  well  acquainted  with  Liverpool  coal, 
that  it  will  burn  twice  as  long.  A  direct  comparison  has 
not  been  made,  to  my  knowledge,  but  that  the  assertion  has 
much  truth  in  it,  1  have  no  doubt 

The  Deep  River  coal  is,  in  the  first  place,  quite  free  from 
smut;  it  does  not  soil  the  ringers,  but  in  a  trifling  degree. 
It  butns  freely,  and  forms  a  cake;  or  it  undergoes  a  semi- 
fusion,  and  agglutinates,  and  forms  a  pariially  impervious 
hollow  cake,  within  which  combustion  goes  on  for  a  long 
time.  When  a  small  pile  of  it  is  made  upon  the  ground, 
it  may  be  ignited  by  a  match  and  a  few  dry  leaves  or 
sticks.  It  may  be  ignited  in  the  blaze  of  a  lamp  or  candle. 
The  coal  is,  therefore,  highly  combustible,  easily  ignited 
and  burns  with  a  bright  feme  like  light  wood,  for  a  long 
time.  It  may  be  burnt  upon  wood  fire.  It  may  be  burnt 
in  the  common  fire-place,  and  it  is  not  a  little  strange,  that 
gentlemen,  who  have  used  it  for  many  years,  in  a  black 
smith's  forge,  should  not  have  used  it  in  their  parlors,  in- 
stead  of  green  black  oak. 

This  coal  is  adapted  to  all  the  purposes,  for  which  the 
bituminous  coals  are  specially  employed.  Thus,  for  the 
manufacture  of  the  carburetted  hydrogen,  for  lighting  streets 
and  houses,  there  i*  no  coal  superior  to  it.  It  \\ill  require 
less  expense  for  furrishing  it ;  because,  it  contains  so  little 
sulphur,  from  which  sulphuretted  hydrogen  is  formed.  So, 


131 


also,  in  the  grate,  it  will  be  far  less  offensive,  for  the  same 
reason.  But,  as  it  is  rich  in  bitumen,  it  will  furnish  a  large 
amount  of  gas,  and  that  which  is,  comparatively,  pure. 
This  advantage  is  one  of  great  importance.  It  should, 
also,  be  stated,  that  it  furnishes  an  excellent  cake,  which 
may  be  used  for  manufacturing  purposes,  and  as  it  is  left 
very  porous,  it  is  in  a  condition  to  absorb  a  large  quantity 
of  the  solution  of  cyanide  of  potassium  ;  aad  hence,  is 
well  adapted  to  the  work  of  reducing  the  rnetals.  It  is 
scarcely  necessary  to  add,  that  it  is  admirably  adapted  to 
steamings^  inasmuch  as  its  flame  is  free  and  durable.  For 
forge  use,  it  is  not  surpassed  by  any  coal  in  market ;  and 
for  parlor  grates,  it  is  both  pleasant,  economical,  and  free 
from  dirt.  If  a  chimney  has  a  poor  draft,  it  is  liable  to  the 
objection  common  to  all  eoals  of  this  kind, — the  escape 
of  soot  into  the  room. 

The  qualities  of  the  Deep  River  coal  are  of  that  char- 
acter, then,  which  will  give  it  the  highest  place  in  the  mar- 
ket. The  localities  which  have  been  best  explored,  and 
where  coa!  of  adacUeJ  character  has  bc?e;i  attained,  are  at 
Hornesville  and  Farmville,  both  in  the  same  neighborhood. 
The  Taylor  mine,  the  Gulf  or  Horton,  and  the  Murchison 
mines,  all  furnish  a  bituminous  coal,  which  may  vary 
in  some  minor  points,  yet  is  quite  similar  as  a  whole 
The  Horton  mine  has  been  used  the  longest.  It  was 
known  in  the  revolution,  aud  a  report  made  to  Congress, 
respecting  it,  is  still  extant.  Had  the  propositions  or  views 
been  carried  out,  which  were  expressed  in  that  report,  we 
can  scarcely  tell,  what  the  results  would  have  been,  not 
only  ujSron  the  population  of  Deep  River,  but  ateo,  upon 
the  enterprise  of  the  State.  Lt  must  be  aoticed.  that  Deep 
River  is  central,  and  in  the  interior  of  a  country,  abound- 
ing in  iron  ;  that  it  is  navigable,  by  aid  of  certain  im- 
provements;  that  it  comnamunujates  with  the  ocean,  and 
finds  a  market  abroad,  for  a  surplus  of  the  products  of 
man  u fact  tires  and  agriculture  ;  that  a  use  of  the  natural 
advantages,  to  a  partial  extent  only,  makes  a  ho.?.e  market. 


132 


But  the  time  had  not  come,  for  improving  the  resources 
of  this  district.  The*  are,  therefore,  reserved  entire  for 
the  present,  and  they  cannot  be  neglected  longer,  unless 
a  suicidal  State  policy  is  pursued. 

But  however  fine  and  excellent  a  coal  may  be,  it  is  ne- 
ce.^ary  that  it  should  form  extensive  beds,  in  order  to  have 
a  commercial  value. 

$  94  The  next  question,  then,  of  interest  to  the  com- 
munity is,  (for  the  community  is  interested  as  much  as 
tlh;  owners,)  will  it  bear  mining.  ;md  the  expenditure  of 
the  necessary  capital,  to  take  it  fo  narket.  To  answer  this 
question,  it  is  necessary  to  m<ke  some  calculations,  by 
which  v\e  may  form  some  ju>t  view  of  its  quantity  ?  In 
doing  this,  we  may  venture  tuassiM.e,  on  a  geological  basis, 
that  the  coal  seams,  which  outcrop  from  beneath  the  sami- 
si<  its.  xiend  beneath  tlum,  and  for  what  appears  to  th-j 
contrary,  the  slates,  with  their  coal  bets,  are  coextensive 
with  I  he  under  and  overly  I  g  MM  dMones.  his  foiniaii<  n  is 
known  to  form  a  belt  of  rocks,  from  12  to  14  miles  wide. 
The  line  of  outcrops  of  the  slates,  upon  which  coal  has 
been  raised,  is  about  20  miles  Bu;  the  line  of  o  tcrop  of 
the  unexplored  slate,  which  embraces  the  coal,  is  at  least 
60  miles  withio  the  .State,  on  a  line  running  south  ol  west. 
We  mny  assume  the  following  data,  viz  :  that  the  coal  beds 
extend  from  'heir  northern  outcrop,  three  miles  beneath  the 
sandstone  ;  which  is  about  one  third  their  natural  extent  ; 
and  that  the  line  of  outcrop,  upon  which  coal  is,  and  will 
be  found,  is  thirty  mile*.  If  the  thickest  sea. u  of  co  »  is 
worked,  which  has  a  thickness  of  6  feet,  exclusive  of  a 
thin  band  of  slate,  it  will  give 'for  every  square  yard.of 
surface,  two  square  yards  of  coal.  A  square  acre  has 
4.900  superficial  yards;  hence,  there  will  be  9:800  c.qunre 
yards  of  co.l.  in  each  an<,  and  as  H  square  \r^rd  of  coal 
weighs  a  ton,  there  will  be  for  every  acre,  9,800  tons  of  coal. 
A  thousand  acres  will  give  (J,800,000  tons  ol  coal,  or  a 


133 


square  mile,  6,272,000  tons  This  coal  field  is  known  to 
extend  thirty  miles,  in  the  direction  of  outcrop,  and  to  be 
workable,  fora  breadth  of  three  miles.  We  may  from  this 
data,  calculate  how  much  accessible  coal  we  may  expect 
to  find,  in  this  quite  limited  field  If  the  field  covers  oniy 
43  .square  miles,  tha  lowest  esti-note  to  be  taken,  we  may 
calculate  its  value,  by  the  following  mode  : 

If  one  hundred  tons  of  coil  ar-  taksn  out  daily,  thirty 
thousand  tons  would  be  remove;!  annually,  reckoning  three 
hundred  working  days  to  the  year.  I.  would,  at  this  rate, 
require  over  three  hundred  years,  to  remove  the  coal  from 
a  thousand  acres,  or,  over  two  hundred  years,  to  remove 
that  which  underlies  a  square  mile,  or,  eight  thousand  six 
hundred  years,  to  remove  the  cojl  of  forty  three  square 
miles.  If  in  estimating  the  value  of  this  coal  field,  we  base 
our  calculations  upon  time,  they  should  satisfy  us;  or  if  we 
base  them  upon  quantity,  they  will  warrant  the  investment 
of  capital  In  these  calculations,  ve  have  both  time  arid 
quantity,  ai  d  the  State,  in  encouraging  improvements  i\s 
well  as  individual",  may  look  forward  with  confidence,  on 
the  permanency  and  safety,  in  investments,  in  thn  ki  d  ot 
property.  The  wants  of  the  world  are  with  the  pop- 
illation — indeed,  they  keep  ahead  of  simple  increase  of 
individuals.  The  quar.tity  to  be  removed  annually  may  ba 
increased,  and  leave  the  time  sufficiently  long,  to  satisfy 
the  investment  of  capital;  or  the  time  may  be  increased,  by 
diminishing  the  qu  mtity,  and  still  the  annual  profits  of  the 
iims!iue:it  shoul  i  satisfy  the  capitalist.  But  while  popula- 
tion increases  at  a  rapi  I  rate,  the  resources  of  the  forest 
tor  fujl  arrt  di  ni.ii<h  ng  »t  a  greater  ratio,  than  the  simple 
increis3  of  p  >,>  ilati  >  i  :  ill  r»fore,  there  is  no  way  in 
which  capital  can  be  so  sat"  l\  invested,  as  in  c  >al  lands. 

If  the  foreg  >ing  calculations  are  correct,  they  justify  tlia 
work  which  ins  b?^n  un.lert.-tk;?n  (o  improve  thi  naviga- 
tion of  L)  ep  R  vef.  It  is  prud -nee,  to  be  cautions  in 
sciie.nes  of  this  kin:!,  but  in  this  case,  the  amount  of  pro- 


perty  beneath  the  surface  or  in  llie  rocks,  upon  this  river, 
is  enormous — it  should  be  dug  out ;  arid  what  it  costs  to 
do  this,  will  be  turning  materials  and  labor  into  money. 
If  the  whole  enterprize  is  begun,  and  carried  on  in  a  proper 
spirit,  every  nook  and  corner  of  the  State,  from  Cnrrituck 
to  Buncombe,  will  feel  an  invigorating  ii  fluence. 

But  the  calculation,  as  to  the  quantity  of  coal,  will  pro- 
bably far  exceed,  than  fall  short  of  the  estimates.  In  the 
first  p^ace  only  a  part  of  the  area  is  taken  into  the  calcu- 
lation, and  then,  in  assumirg  the  thickness  ©f  ihe  principal 
beds,  as  only  six  feet,  it  may  be  regarded  as  only  the  mini- 
mum thickness.  It  will  rather  increase  than  diminish  \ 
this  view  of  the  matter  is  supported  by  observation.  For 
as  the  slopes  have  been  carried  along  the  dip,  there  ha* 
been  a  perceptible  increase  already.  It  is  also  to  he  con- 
sidered, that  at  the  outerop,  when  vegetable  matter  forming 
the  coal  is  only  upon  the  outer  vein,  it  should  be  twice  that 
at  a  distance  from  the  outcrop;  for  we  may  suppose,  that, 
in.  the  middle  only,  of  a  coal  basin,  do  we  obtain  the  max- 
imum thickness.  Thus,  one  of  the  coal  seams  in  the  Rich- 
mond basin  is  forty  feet  thick.  The  Deep  River  beds,  not 
having  been  broken  up,  or  not  having  suffered  an  urtift 
through  the  middle  of  its  trough  or  basin,  exhibits  nowhere 
near  the  surface,  an  outcrop  of  coat,  except  vpon  the  rim, 
or  outer  edge  of  the  basin.  As  we  penetrate  into  it.  we 
h;ive  grounds  which  justify  the  view,  that  the  seams  will 
increase  steadily  in  thickness,  as  the  slope  penetrates  into* 
the  basin,  towards  the  centre  and  then  the  se  <ms,  which 
row  appear  only  upon  the  outer  rim,  will  thick  n  and  per- 
haps unite  and  Conn  one  di.stir:ct  heavy  seam  towards  the 
middle  of  the  basin  or  trough. 

The  foregoing  views  <is  to  quantity  are  founded  upon 
data  di-rived  from  observation,  the  phenomena  oi  c<  al 
fields,  and  theory,  \\h>h  is  well  sustained,  respecting  the 
manner  hi  which  successive  seams  of  coal  have  been  form- 
ed. 


135 

The  calculations  as  to  the  quantity  of  coal  in  the  Deep  Hi- 
coal  field  are  hased  upon  what  is  known,  and  without  ref- 
erence to  what  we  may  possibly  find  by  exploration  here- 
after. These  calculations  must  be  regarded  as  satisfactory, 
and  such  as  will  jusiify  the  hopes  and  expectations  of  the 
owners,  and  those  who  are  interested  in  the  improvements 
of  the  day. 


THE    SAi\7DSTONES    ABOVE   THE   SLATES. 

The  unper  division  of  this  system  of  rocks  is  made  up 
of  a  series  of  sandstones,  which  differ  only  slightly  from 
those  below.  They  are  hard  and  red,  brown  and  motrlejd, 
or  variegated  rocks,  which  are  frequently  separated  from 
each  other  by  soft  greenish  clays.  There  are  to  be  repeti- 
tions of  the  inferior  members,  so  fur  as  this  composition 
and  origin  is  concerned.  Among  the  different  reri  and 
brown  strata,  it  is  very  common  to  find  those  which  con- 
tain many  small  irregular  cavities.  Probably  these  civi- 
ties  contained  imperfect  crystals  of  salt,  or  other  soluble  sub- 
stance, which  has  b«'en  removed  !>\  solution. 

These  sandstones,  like  the  inferior,  are  destitute  of  fnssi!sy 
excepting  a  few  obscure  vegetable  casts,  which  are  indeter- 
minable. Near  and  just  above  the  coal  slates,  a  stratum 
of  impure  limestone  is  filled  with  the  posidonia  mimita 
which  disappears  with  the  commencement  of  the  red  rocks. 

Among  the  softer  la.ers  oxyde  of  iron  o.  curs  in  small 
nodules.  It  is  not  in  sufficient  quantities  to  be  of  much  ac- 
count. It  has  been  employed  in  dying  woollens,  and 
hence  has  received  the  name  of  dye  stone. 


136 


But,  10  much  of  the   upper  sandstones  are  concealed  by 
soil,  that  even  plaster  might  be  hid  within  the  strata. 


AGRICULTURAL  CHARACTERS  OF  THE  UPPER 
AND  LOWER  SANDSTONES. 

§  95.  The  softer  strata  disintegrate,  anr  pass  into  the 
condition  of  soil.  These  soils  are  always  red.  but  the  red 
inclii.es  more  to  a  brown  than  the  soils,  which  are  formed 
from  the  gold  slates,  which,  from  the  presence  of  sulphuret 
of  iron,  become  red  also.  The  sandstone  soil  is  derived 
mainly  from  the  argilh  ceous  parts  of  the  formation,  and 
hence  it  bears  the  characters  ot  an  argillaceous  soil,  a  de- 
gree of  stifft.ess  which  suits  the  cotton  and  wheat  plant. 
Its  stiffness  and  comparative  impermeability  give  it  re- 
tentivem-ss  :  but  it  also  holds  too  much  water,  and  especial- 
ly where  the  land  is  flat,  it  is  far  too  compact  to  admit  of 
high  cultivation  without  the  aid  of  draining.  The  ele- 
ments of  the  soil  are  adapted  to  the  highest  and  best  culti- 
vation But  as  the  surface  water  is  compelled  to  flow 
over  the  surface,  and  into  channels  cf  it*  own  forming.it 
is  very  liable  in  the  end  to  score  the  soil  deeply  with  gorges, 
and  ravines,  and  thereby  injure  very  much  the  plantation. 
These  red  soils,  also,  when  cultivated  to  exhaustion,  or  even 
before  they  bec<  me  bare,  render  it  extrerr.ely  difficult  In  res- 
tore to  the  surface  its  lost  vegetation.  'I  he  only  mode  in 
which  it  can  be  effected,  is  to  cover  and  protect  those 
places  with  straw  or  brush.  The  heat  ot  the  sun  shoul  I  be 
so  lie  tied,  and  the  surface  protected  from  washing  anew  by 
rains.  Bv  ptM  severing  in  this  way,  these  ill  looking  and 
barren  spots  may  be  removed  from  a  plantation. 


137 


THICKNESS  OF  THE  FORMATION. 


§  96  It  is  difficult  to  obtain  the  data  by  which  the 
thickness  ot  this  formation  can  be   determined.     It  is  con-' 
cealed  by  its  own  debris  so  generally,  that  it  is  only  from 
the  subordinate  parts  that  its  thickness  can  be  inferred  — 
Taking  the  subordinate  beds,  dip  and  width  all  into  the  ac- 
count, the  whole  thickness  ol  the  formation  cannot  be  I  ss 
than  five  thousand  feet.     The  interior  mass,  or  that   bel"W 
the  slate,  is  about  fifteen  hundred,  the  slate  five    hundred, 
and  perhaps  six   hundred,  and    the  superior  division  three 
thousand.     This  last  estimate  is    below  the  mark    rather 
than  ab^ve  it.     In   forming   an   estimate  of  the   thickness 
of  this  formation.  I  have  been  careful  to  guard   agains1  de- 
ception which   often   arises  from  a  repetition  of  strain   in 
consequence  .of  a  sue 'ession  of  uplifts.     In  this   formation 
the  danger  may  be  greater  than  in  many  others,  as  the  stra- 
ta are  concealed  by  soil.     But  the  indications  upon  the  sur- 
face go  to  prove  that   the  strata   have  been  disturbed   only 
at  one  period.     A  single  trap  dyke  traverses  the  entire  for- 
mation from  the  South-west  towards  the  North-east.     This 
trap  appears  at  numerous  points   along:  the   line,  as  at   'he 
Gulf.  m;d  Evans'  mill,  crossing  the  river  twice,  and  f<  r  us 
at  «  ach  place  a  considerable  ledge  of  rocks      The  falls     :e 
du",  Mm  fore,  to  the  trap  dyke.     At  another  plnce  near  Ktr- 
ai  s'  mills,  in  the  road  by  Mrs.  Uoberts,'  the  dip  of  ihe  s:r  ta 
is  it-versed  lor  a  short  distance.     But  this  is  only  l<~c;  I,     id 
does  not  affect  the  great  mass  of  strata  of  which  the  forma- 
tion is  composed.     South  ol  the  river,  they  preset ven  great 
uniWmity  of  dip,  as  to  direction,  and  amount,  and  no  ,    rt 
has  come  to  light,  which  indicates  an  instance  of  repetition* 


138 


§  97.  Having  briefly  noticed  nnd  described  the  three 
m  mbers,  composing  this  formation,  a  few  remarks  upon 
the  origin  of  the  materials  will  be  in  place. 

The  materials,  conside  « d  in  their  mineralogicTl  charac- 
ters, were  derived  fpim  two  distinct  sources  :  the  common 
sou  ce  was  undoubtedly  the  slaie  of  the  gold  series.  Of 
the  correctness  of  this  view,  there  can  be  no  doubt,  as 
they  even  contain  a  ••mail  quantity  of  gold,  and  the  quartz 
retains  the  peculiar  characteristic  of  that  of  the  slates  ; 
it  is  best  f-en  in  the  conglomerates,  where  the  masses  of 
quartz  are  larger  than  in  sandstone.  The  color  of  the 
sandstones  is  due  to  the  presence  of  oxyde  of  iron.  The 
iron  came  from  the  same  source  as  the  sandstones.  These 
slates  are  highly  charged  with  pyrites,  which  have  been 
thoroughly  decomposed; — the  sulphur  dissipated,  or  probably 
it  has  formed  rew  combinations.  The  oxyde  of  iron,  being 
insoluble,  has  remained  with  the  particles  composing  the 
rocks  ;  and  it  has  formed,  of  itself,  no  combination  with 
other  bodies,  unless  it  is  wnh  carbonic  acid.  The  iron 
forms  a  superficial  coa  ng  upon  the  angular  grains  of 
sands,  an<J  niay  be  removed  by  washing,  when  it  leaves 
a  perfectly  pure  white  sand.  In  the  other  case,  it  is  inter- 
mixed with  clay  and  a  smailt-r  proportion  of  fine  sand,  and 
forms  the  softer  beds,  whioh  are  sometimes  called  red  marls. 
It  seems,  therefor*.,  that  the  materials  of  this  group  of  rocks 
were  brought  from  the  northwest  side  of  it,  or  from  that  por- 
tion of  t?  e  gold  rocks  which  lie  in  that  direction.  As, 
however,  the  area  of  deposit  must  have  been  basin  shaped, 
or  trough  shaped,  he  materials  must  have  been  derived, 
also  from  all  sides  o(  it;  but  our  examinations  are  facili- 
ta:ed  upon  the  nor th west  side  by  a  vertical  movement; 
her*ce.  we  are  able  to  test  the  truth  of  ihese  views,  rather 
upon  that  side,  than  upon  the  southeast. 

§  98.  It  is  more  difficult  to  determine  the  origin  of  the 
materials  composing  the  coal  slates.  These  contain  lime, 
but  no  sand,  except  in  combination  with  alumina.  The 


139 


slates,  therefore,  differ  so  much  from  the  sandstones,  that 
there  can  be  no  doubt,  that  the  origin  and  source,  fiom 
whence  they  were  derived,  was  different  also  They  indi- 
cate a  total  change  in  the  direction  in  which  the  sediment 
came,  nnd  as  there  is  no  formation  to  the  northwest,  cr 
southwest,  to  which  their  oiigin  can  be  attributed.  lam 
inclined  to  regard  the  source  as  concealed  by  the  present 
ocean. 

The  sandstones  in  the  United  States,  of  the  ages  closely 
approximating  to  those  under  consideration,  were  deposited 
in  shallow  water.  The  ripple  marks,  the  loo!  prints,  which 
have  been  preserved,  are  regarded  as  proofs  of  this  position. 
Taking  the  same  ground  and  kind  of  evidence,  I  have  not  yet 
been  able  to  furnish  the  same  ground  of  proof  for  their  deposi- 
tion in  sh  illow  water.  I  have  not  yet  discovered  footprints,  or 
ripple  marks,  and  the  only  fact,  which  goes  to  support  the 
vi%w  entertained,  of  the  depth  of  wate,,  in  which  the  strata 
were  deposited,  is.  a  single  layer,  which  had  cracked  in  dry- 
ing. These  cracks  were  subsequently  filled  with  sediment. 
Still,  but  few  opportunities  for  a  disclosure  of  the  inte- 
rior of  these  deposits  have  been  furnished.  The  blocks 
of  sandstone,  which  have  been  employed  jn  building, 
have  been  procured  from  the  surface,  and  which  were 
already  loosened  from  their  beds;  besides  this,  the  strata 
have  not  been  laid  oare  by  an  inundation.  The  means,  there- 
fore, for  obtaining  a  series  ot  facts,  bearing  upon  the.-e 
questions ,  are  insufficient.  They  throw  but  little  light 
upon  them,  and  we  must,  therefore,  wait  until  railroads 
and  internal  improvements  have  laid  open  the  series  to  in- 
spection. 

The   evidence,  as   it  now  stands,  favors    the  view,  that 
these  rocks  were  deposited  in  deep  water;  the  absence  of 
all  tipple  marks,  the  great  thickness  of  the  deposits,  and 
thickness  of  the  deeper  layers,  indicate  for  the  sandstones 
dtep  oceanic  deposits. 


140 


AGE  AND  EQUIVALENCY  OF  THE  FORMATION. 

$  99.  The  age  of  a  rock,  or  of  a  formation,  is  determined 
without  difficulty,  provided  it  contains  fossils ;  especially 
those  belonging  to  the  molusca; — or,  if  its  relations  to 
other  systems  can  be  seen ;  whether  those  systems  are 
above  or  below.  But  the  sandstones  and  coal -stones  rest 
upon  a  series  ot  gold-bearing:  rocks,  whose  age  dates  buck 
farther  than  any  fossiliferous  rocks  ; — hence  they  cannot 
be  employed  for  comparison.  The  only  rocks  which  rest 
upon  them  are  the  sands  of  the  tertiary.  We  have  no 
way  boards  by  which  their  relations  to  other  formations 
can  be  determined,  excepting  those  of  the  most  general 
character. 

The  fossils  are  exceedingly  scarce;  and  their  spe3:es 
few  in  number,  and  not  very  distinctive.  They  are  confined 
to  one  species  of  molusca:  a  small  posidoma  or  cypris ; 
which  is  regarded  as  a  crustacean,  and  which  is  only  the 
size  of  a  grass-seed  ;  the  teeth  of  two  or  three  si>uri:ms» 
and  the  scales  and  teeth  of  one  or  two  fish.  The  p'-*i- 
doniu  does  not  differ  from  the  posidoma  of  the  Richmond 
beds,  except  in  size : — it  is  smaller,  and  resembles  the 
P.  minutice  of  Gold  fuss. 

This  iossil  is  remarkable  for  its  numbers  ;  every  layer 
in  portions  ol  ;he  slate  is  crowded  with  them,  and  t  y 
range  from  the  top  to  the  bottom.  It  is  usually  one-eighth 
of  an  inch  in  diameter  ;  The  largest  rar.ly  ever  exceed  one- 
quarter.  It  is  always  fl  it,  in  the  slates,  from  pressure,  and 
always  round  and  plump  in  the  thin  beds  of  impure  lime- 
stone. The  cypris,  or  it  may  be  a  cytherin  >,  is  ohnut 
one  line  in  lengih  and  pointed  at  both  ends,  and  sun-  '\. 
li  re>etnbKjs  a  hny  -e  d  ;  and  so  numerous  is  this 
minute  fossil,  that  thick  layers  are  made  up  nlmosi  \- 
tirely  of  it.  It  is  scarcely  possible  to  touch  a  point  with  a 
pin.  and  not  mutilate  one. 


141 


The  presence  of  the  cypris  indicates  that  the  slates  are 
a  fiesh  water  formation — they  go  to  prove  that  a  remark- 
able change  tuok  pi  ace  alter  the  lower  sandstones  were 
deposited — that  the  ocean,  in  which  the  sandstones  were 
formed,  was  removed — a».d  the  basin,  to  which  sediment 
ha«i  been  brought  from  a  distant  quarter,  ceased  to  be 
brought  to  it  as  formerly,  and  from  the  same  as  they  had 
been  ; — ari''f  in  fine,  thai  what  had  been  sea  became  a  fresh 
water  lake.  It  was  not  until  this  change  from  red  sandy 
sediments  to.>k  |  lace,  that  the  fossils  peopling  the  waters 
appeared  ;  and  then  ihey  were  confined  to  a  very  limited 
number  of  specks 

Jf,  however,  this  small  tossil  is  a  cytherina,  the  change 
which  it  is  suppose,!  may  have  occuned  at  the  close  of  the 
oceanic  sandstones,  \yas  only  in  the  direction  of  the  sedi- 
ments ;  a  change  which  appears  to  have  been  sudden — for 
the  sandstones  scarcely  alterr.ate  with  the  lower  slates. 
They  begin,  as  it  were,  at  once ;  but  the  basin  or  trougL 
w;ts  stili  ocear.ic. 

Ut  saurian  remains,  in  the  formation,  1  can  speak  only 
of  two  species  in  the  sandstones: — one  below  the  slates, 
ai.d  of  the  crocodilian  type;  and  one  above,  with  long 
curved  teetii.  And,  probably,  three  species  in  the  slaie — 
the  teeth  of  one  aie  long,  slcndtr,  an  J  curve  four  inches; 
the  teeth  ot  another,  ol  a  medium  length,  and  only  slightly 
flatici  ed,  and  very  finely  serrated  on  one  edge  ;  the  teeth 
of  she  other,  Distinctly  serrated  on  both  edges,  and  agrees 
with  figuies  of  the  tkecodontu  saurus  of  Owen. 

The  latter  p<-i.iLs  to  the  Permitn  age  ;  and  Sir  Charles 
Lyeil  has  observed,  that  tins  saurian  was  regarded  as  the 
oidcst  animal  known  of  that  type; — and,  irom  its  pre- 
sei  ce  in  th-j  older  deposits,  Mr.  CKveii  has  shown  that  it 
militates  ag  iit.si  the  doctrines  of  Hie  Author  of  the  Y'esti- 
g  >  ol  Creation.  It  ranks  v\ith  the  highest  animals  of  that 
t \  pe  ;  proving  that  rank  is  not  determined  by  the  periods 
in  which  animals  have  lived.  The  most  remarkable  saurian, 


142 


if  saurian  it  is,  is  the  species  furnished  with  the  long  slen- 
der teeth,  of  which  I  have  seen  no  figures  resembling  them 
in  form  or  length.  Tfcey  are  slightly  flattened,  giving  an 
oval  in  a  transverse  section  ;  but  their  sides  are  not  armed 
with  serratures. 

The  bones  in  the  rocks  above  the  coal,  are  black.  The 
sandstone  had  become  concretionary,  and  exfoliated  in 
their  coats,  like  those  of  an  onion;  and  hence,  it  was  im- 
possible, to  obtain  them  in  a  good  condition  ;  besides,  the 
rock  had,  also,  become  exceeding  hard  and  tough. 

The  iossils,  being  in  my  opinion,  new.  throw  no  positive 
light  upon  the  age  of  the  rocks,  in  which  they  occur. 

The  fish  scales  are  quite  small  and  smooth.  Their  form 
is  rhomboidul,  some  acute,  others  obtuse.  The  teeth  are 
small,  slender  and  pointed,  and  seem  to  fork  slightly,  at 
their  roots.  Another  fossil,  which  might  be  mistaken  for 
a  vegetable,  is,  undoubtedly,  an  appendage  to  a  fish. 

The  vegetables  are  few  in  number,  and  differ  from  those 
of  the  coal  rocks  of  Pennsylvania,  or  the  flora  of  the  car- 
boniferous system.  An  IJquiselites,  differing  from  E  Corn- 
munis,  is  the  only  one  of  this  genus  1  have  seen.  A  lyco- 
podites,  and  other  allied  forms,  are  all  I  have  yet  found,  ex- 
cept a  naked  aud  rather  spinous  vegetable,  which  is  unknown 
in  the  carboniferous  rocks.  It  is  a  cellular  crytognmwus 
plant.  This  is  very  common  and  abundant  at  Madison, 
aud  one  or  two  layers  of  sJate  are  covered  with  it  at 
Evans'  Mills. 

The  roots  of  vegetables,  in  the  fire  clay,  are  thin,  nar- 
row, ribbon-like  tissues ;  and  have  tost  their  vegetable 
structure*.  Their  thinness  and  compressibility  show,  how- 
ever, that  the  roots  were  spongy,  of  a  loose  texture,  and 
were  aquatic. 

The  meagre  list  of  plants  and  animals,  then,  deposited  in 
the  slates  furnish  only  grounds  for  conjecture,  to  what 
age  the  formation  belongs.  My  opinion*  derived  from  all 
the  facts  and  circumstances  known  to  me,  inclines  me  to 


143 

adopt  the  belief,  that  it  is  the  upper  new  red  sandsstone 
Still,  if  the  Richmond  coal  basin  is  of  the  same  age,  as  the 
eoal  rocks  of  North  Carolina,  Geologists  will  be   disposed 
to  place  the  series  along  with  the  Oolites  or  Lias,  a  '    > 
Wm    B.  Rodgers  and  Sir  Ch.   Lyell    have   done — on  the 
ground,  that   the  fossils  are,  in    part,   identical   in   species 
with  those  of  Whitby,  in  Ksigland,  where  those  rocks  are 
well  developed.     Mr   Lyell  observes,  that   the  sandstones 
containing  fish,  of  the   Connecticut  river,  are  of  an  older 
date  than  the  strata  containing  coal  near  Richmond.     The 
higher  antiquity  of  the  Connecticut  beds  cannot  be  proved 
by  direct  supposition  ;  but  the  fact  is  presumed  from  the 
structure  of  the  country.     That  structure  proves  them  to 
be  newer  than    ihe    movements   ».o  which    the  Alleghany 
chain  owes  its  movements  or  flexures;  and  this  chain  in- 
cludes the  ancient  coal  formations  among  its  contorted  rocks, 
The  uriconfonitalve   position  of   this  new  red  with  the  pri- 
mary is   often  seen.     He    regards    the    sandstones  of  the 
Connecticut   valley    as  triassic  ;   but.  to   what  portion  of 
the  triassic;,  which  division,  whether  upper  or  lower,  is 
not  determined 

In  Europe,  the  triassic  is  rich  in  fossils  ;  and  different 
parts  oi  the  series  are  so  well  characterised  by  fossils,  that 
the  determinations  are  not  difficult.  But  here,  in  this 
country,  the  Connecticut  valley,  the  New  Jersey  beds,  tlie 
sandstones  of  the  Potomac,  and  Fredericksburg,  and  North 
Carolina,  ate  illobscire.  from  their  relations,  and  from  the 
absence  of  characteristic  fossils. 


144 


THE  DAN  RIVER  COAL  FIELD. 


§  100.  In  Rockingham  and  Stokes  Counties,  a  series  of 
rocks  have  been  known  for  a  quarter  of  a  century,  as  coal- 
bearing.  These  rocks  are  similar  to  those  of  Deep  River, 
and  consist  of  the  same  members.  They  lie  in  the 
sa:ne  order,  and  have  the  same  relations  to  each  other,  as 
ti,'>se  ol'Cnalham  and  M«»nre,  <>r  Deep  liiver. 

While  theie  can  he  no  doubt  respecting  the  age  and  re- 
lations  of  the  entire  series,  compared  wish  tliose  of  Deep 
River,  still  I  have  observed  a  fe\v  peculiarities  worthy  ol 
Donee. 

The.  Dan  river  coal  deposits  may  be  divided,  for  the 
convenience  of  description,  into  five  parts:  — 

1.  Imperfect  conglomerates  and  breccias. 

2.  Lower  sandstones,  including    the  soft  and 
hard. 

3.  Coal    slates,    with   their   subordinate  de- 


4.  Uuper  sandstones;   including  the  soft  and 
hard  kn;ds. 

5.  Conglomerates  ;    cr  brecciated  conglom- 
erates. 

The  several  parts,  constituting  a  complete  and  perfect 
system,  occupy  a  synclinal  trough,  and  lie  in  the  primary 
or  stratified  pyro  crystalline  tocks.  Its  direction  is  r.orih. 
east,  and  southwest.  The  axis  may  be  defined  by  uniting 
Leak*?!  He  and  Germanton  by  a  line.  This  line  will  repre- 
sent the  direction  of  the  coal  slates 


145 


The  general  dip  of  the  system  is  to  the  northwest ; the 

angle  of  dip  lies  within  15  and  40°.  The  dip  is  usually 
above  20°.  In  North  Carolina,  the  rocks  extend  40 
miles.  The  breadth  is  between  four  and  seven  miles.  The 
system  extends  into  Virginia  on  the  north  ;  but  how  far,! 
am  uninformed. 

This  field,  it  will  be  observed,  covers  a  smaller  area  than 
Deep  River.  It  is  similar,  in  some  respects,  to  the  Rich- 
mond coal  fields,  but  is  disconnected  by  the  intervening 
primary  rocks. 

If  we  consult  a  map  of  the  United  States,  and  mark 
upon  the  map  the  position  of  the  coal- field  to  which  refer- 
ence has  been  made,  we  cannot  fail  to  notice  the  singular 
fact,  that  there  are  three  small  troughs,  formed  in  synclinal 
dips  of  the  primary  slates^  and  all  lying  with  their  axes  di- 
rected to  the  southwest,  or  nearly  parallel  to  the  present 
Atlantic  coast. 

These  troughs  are  now  disconnected,  and  an  examination 
of  the  series,  their  outcrops,  &c.  go  to  show  that  each  was 
formed  in  a  trough  by  itself,  and  totally  disconnected  with 
each  other.  Each  was  formed  in  the  bosom  of  its  own  sea, 
and  each  remarkably  deep..  The  area?  upon  which  these 
rocks  were  deposited,  have  never  suffered  from  denudation,  or 
from  great  fracture  ;  but  are  traversed  by  moderately  sized 
trap  dykes-  The  Richmond  coal  beds  have  been  disturbed 
more  than  those  of  Dan  River,  and  the  Dan  River  lie  in- 
clined at  a  greater  angle  than  Deep  River, 

When  oui  examination  is  extended  to  the  Hudson  and 
Connecticut  Rivers, similar  rocks  are  found.  The  sandstone 
is  accompanied  with  conglomerates  and  slates.  The  latter, 
however,  are  hard,  and  retain  the  impression  of  (he  fish  and 
fossils  better:  than  those  of  the  Dan  or  Deep  River.  All 
these  beds  of  sandstone  lie  parallel  to  each  other.  They  are 
comparatively  long,  but  the  breadth  is  inconsiderable.  That 
these  several  isolated  series  represent  one  period,,  is  highly 
probable,  though  not  geologically  proved. 

1Q 


146 


Four  of  these  isolated  troughs  are  characterised  bv  out- 
bursts of  the  pyroplastic  rocks,  or  igneous.  The  Trap  or 
Palisades  of  the  Hudson  ;  the  vast  fields  and  mountains  of 
trap  in  the  Connecticut  Valley,  extending  more  than  a  hun- 
dred and  fifty  miles  ;  and  the  heavy  trap  dykes  of  Deep 
River,  and  the  minor  trap  dykes  of  the  Dim,  belong  to  one 
era.  They  all  cut  throng1!  the  sandstone  and  slates,  and 
send  lateral  blanches  of  th'e  once  molten  mass  both  between 
and  upon  the  layers,  baking  and  hardening  those  which  are 
in  contact  or  in  proximity  with  them. 

Geologists  are  now  very  much  inclined  to  adopt,  the  view- 
that  outbursts  of  igneous  matter,  though  ui  distant  points,  but 
found  upon  and  through  the  same  formation,  happen  at  one 
and  the  same  period. 

Proceeding  still  farther  North,  our  attention  will  be  arrested 
again  by  a  still  more  extensive  outburst  of  trap  in  Nova 
Scotia.  It  is  not  satisfactorily  determined  whether  I  he  traps 
of  Nova  Scotia  are  connected  with  the  new  red  sandstones. 
Still,  it  seems  to  have  happened  at  a  period  subsequent  to  the 
carboniferous  ;  and  the  trap  lies  upon,  and  has  intruded 
itself  into,  a  rock,  whose  mineral  characters  are  similar  to 
those  of  New  Jersey,  Deep  River  and  Connecticut. 

But  the  foregoing  remarks  may  be  regarded  as  digressions. 
My  object  in  these  remarks  is,  to  identify  age  by  means  of 
phenomena,  and  show  that,  when  rocks  possess  characters  in. 
common,  and  where  certain  phenomena  are  of  the  same  kind, 
and  are  observed  to  be  common  to  them  also,  it  is  an  indica- 
tion that  the  rocks  belong  to  the  same  period. 

It  is  remarkable,  too,  that  all  these  troughs  of  red  sandstone 
repose  directly  upon  the  primary  rooks.  The  junction  of 
sandstone  with  primary  is  very  distinct  at  Blomidon,  Nova 
Scotia,  in  the  Connecticut  Valley,  in  the  Hudson  River 
Valley,  in  the  Richmond  basin,  the  Dan  River,  and  the 
Deep  River.  The  most  Southern  troughs  of  red  sandstone 
are  the  least  disturbed,  and  the  smallest  quantity  of  trap  ha« 
been  ejected.  In  Nova  Scotia  it  has  reached  its  maximum. 
The  whole  outburst  has  extended  through  twenty  degrees  of 
latitude. 


147 


Whether  the  foregoing  facts  do  really  prove  that  the 
rystetns  are  one  in  age,  and  belong  to  the  same  period  or  not,, 
may  still  require  proof.  The  facts  themselves  are  interesting. 
We  may  require  many  additional  particulars  to  enable  us  to 
interpret  phenomena  aright,  and  assign  to  those  sandstones 
and  sl.xtes  their  true  age. 

§  101.  The  lowest  mass  upon  the  Dan  River,  which 
belongs  to  the  sandstone  series,  is  a  conglomerate,  quite  im- 
perfect, at  least,  where  it  has  fallen  under  my  observation. 
At  Leaksville,  i  have  not  seen  the  lower  conglomerates  ;  but 
at  Germanton,  an  imperfect  mass,  occupying  the  lowest  place 
in  the  series,  is  formed  of  angular  pins  of  granite,  mixed  with 
a  gray  and  reddish  sediment,  in  very  unequal  propor- 
tions. Its  appearance  might  easily  deceive  an  inattentive 
observer.  It  has  an  exceeding  close  resemblance  to  some 
varieties  of  granite.  After  a  close  inspection  of  many  large  rocks 
lying  near  the  small  creek  at  this  place,  rounded  pebbles 
were  found  ;  and,  by  still  farther  search,  roots  of  trees  in 
beds  of  lignite  were  found,  also  branching  into  the  rock. — 
This  represents  the  fine  beds  of  millstone  on  the  Deep  River. 
The  mass  is  thin,  and  of  little  importance. 

Immediately  above  this  bed  of  brecciated  conglomerate, 
there  is  one  of  the  finest  exhibitions  of  an  ancient  forest  in 
this  country.  It  consists  partly  of  roots  of  trees  changed  into 
lignite,  arid  partly  of  perfectly  silicified  trunks  of  trees,  exceed- 
ing two  feet  in  diameter.  The  soil  in  which  the  majority  of 
these  trees  grew,  is  still  concealed.  Segments  of  their  trunks 
stand  out  of  the  soft  rock,  inclining  at  an  angle  to  the  horizon, 
but  lean  in  a  direciion  contrary  to  the  dip  of  the  vock.  A 
road  cuts  through  the  strata  in  which  the  forest  grew.  All 
that  remains  of  it  are  the  trunks  ;  it  was  impossible  to  find  a 
leaf  or  stem  of  herbage  or  fruit.  The  softer  and  more  per- 
ishable parts  and  organs  are  destroyed  by  unknown  agencies. 
Perhaps  some  fortunate  blow  of  the  hammer  may  bring  to 
light  the  leaves  and  fruit.  The  structure  of  these  trunks 
prove  them  to  belong  to  the  natural  family  of  conifers,  or 
the  family  to  which  the  pi  nes,  spruces  and  hemlocks  belong 


148 

The  frees  extend  for  half  a  mile  or  more,  and  no  one,  on 
seeing  the  number,  can  doubt  that  here  grew  a  forest  when 
the  rocks  were  forming. — Similar  trunks  have  been  found  at 
Madison,  and  pieces  of  trunks  occur  upon  Deep  River,  near 
Evans'  bridge,  and  another  forest  of  the  same  character 
upon  Drowning  Creek,  in  Richmond  County.  They  occu- 
py the  sa*me  position  in  the  series.  These  trunks  are  geolo- 
gically important,  and  may  be  employed  to  assist  m  identify- 
ing the  system  with  any  other  at  a  distance.  Numerous 
fragments  of  trunks,  also,  occur  in  all  the  subsequent  forma- 
tions, especially  with  tertiaries,  and  in  the  superficial  cutting 
for  rail-ways.  I  was  at  a  loss  to  account  for  their  occurrence 
in  positions  where  agencies  could  not  be  supposed  to  exist, 
competent  to  silicify  wood.  I  have  been  satisfied  that  most 
of  the  scattered  trunks  were  derived  from  the  red  sandstone 
formation.  They  have  been  transported  by  rivers,  and  by 
various  agencies,  which  have  also  carried  the  slate  rocks,  and 
deposited  them  in  the  green  sand,  and  the  various  subsequent 
beds  of  the  tertiary.  Their  direction  of  transport  is  east- 
wardly. 

§  102.  In  connection  with  the  strata  I  have  described,  (the 
breeciated  conglomerate,)  there  occurs  no  clay  or  argillaceous 
formation,  which  has  a  perfect  concretionary  structure.  Large 
concentric  circles  are  formed  ;  some  of  which  are  two  feet  in 
diameter.  This  part  of  the  rock  is  extremely  soft,  and  is 
nothing  more,  nor  less,  than  clay  of  a  light  green  color.  It 
is  rare  to  find  a  series  of  perfect  concentric  circles,  and  ter- 
minating in  a  nucleus  of  the  size  of  a  two  shilling  piece,  as  at 
this  place.  They  are  due  to  molicular  movements^  which 
have  taken  place,  subsequent  to  the  time  of  deposition.  We 
are  obliged,  from  phenomena  of  this  kind,  to  reckon  mo- 
licular force,  as  one  of  the  silent  geological  forces,  which 
have  been  instrumental  in  effecting  important  changes  in  the 
earth's  crust. 

§  103.  These  argillaceous  beds   lie  beneath  the   common 
sandstones  of  the  formation,  which  consist  of  variegated  and 


149 


gray  masses  of  rock.  They  terminate  with  the  coal  shales. 
At  Leaksvil'e,  a  hard  silicious  slate  intervenes  between  the 
lower  beds  of  sandstone  and  the  slates.  It  is  bluish  and 
flinty,  approaching,  however,  a  sandstone  in  its  composition. 
His  at  least  two  hundred  feet  thick.  It  also  contains  a  few 
layers,  which  externally  resemble  a  mixture  of  carbonate 
oxyde  of  iron.  It  was  in  one  of  these  layers,  I  discovered 
the  fragments  of  the  skeleton  of  a  saurian. 

The  middle  part  of  this  formation  of  sandstone  is  occu- 
pied with  a  soft  marly  slate — the  coal  slate  of  the  system. 
It  differs  in  no  respect,  from  that  of  Deep  River,  bearing  the 
same  fossils,  the  posidonia  and  cypris,  in  equal  abundance, 
through  all  the  strata,  of  which  il  is  cpmposed. 

The  coal  beds  of  Leakiville  lie  in  these  slates  ;  the  beds 
in  which  the  coal  seams  are  exposed  are  two  miles  from  the 
village,  on  ihe  plantation  of  Mr.  Wade. 

The  coal  appears  in  a  long  ridge,  rising  about  sixty  feet 
above  the  meadow,  which  lies  in  the  bend  of  the  Dan,  at 
this  place.  The  following  section  is  partially  exposed  at 
Wade's  coal  mine  — 

1.  Shale  below  the  coal  seams. 

2.  Shaly  micaceous  sandstones,  two  feet. 

3.  Shaly  coal  at  the  outcrop,  eighteen  inches 

to  two  feet. 

4.  Micaceous  shale,  two  feet. 

5.  Coal,  two  to  three  feet. 
5.  Shale,  110  feet. 

7.  Seams  of  a  hard  blue  magnesian  limestone, 

intermixed  with  silex,  four  to  six  feet. 

8.  Soft,  green,  bluish  and   black  shales,  filled 

with  posidonia,  sixty  feet. 

The  shales  still  continue  covered  with  soil ;  the  thickness 
of  the  shales  is  not  less  than  five  hundred  feet. 

The  hard  calcareous  layers  are  separated  by  slate  at  the 
surface. 


150 

The  calcareous  layers  lie  above  the  coal  seams,  and  as 
they  extend  nenrly  if  not  entirely  through  the  formation, 
they  may  be  observed  as  way  boards  in  searching  for  coal. 
The  same  layers  appear  in  Madison,  and  contain  abundance 
of  septaria  of  the  size  of  a  goose  egg. 

Dip  of  the  co.il  slates  at  the  coal  mine  :  N.  35°  W.;  anglo 
of  dip  25°;  strike  S.  80°  VV.  It  is  not  improbable,  that  thb 
angle  of  dip  will  diminish  as  the  seam  is  penetrated. 

§  104.  The  section  of  rocks  lying  between  Eagle  Bridge 
and  Gov.  Morehead's  factory,  is  exhibited  in  the  following 
section  ;  though,  it  should  be  observed,  that  the  rocks  ay* 
concealed,  at  some  points,  between  the  bridge  and  factory. 

1.  Sandstones  and  conglomerates,  concealed  at 

the  bridge 

2.  Flinty  black  slates,  two  hundred  feet,  with 

saurian  remains. 

3.  Coal  slates,  consisting  of  the  usual  green  and 

black  slates,  with  the  posidoniaand  cypris, 
and  a  few  obscure  species  of  plants,  (Ly- 
copcdiacaCj)  fifty  to  six  hundred  feet. 

4.  Red  and  gray  sandstones. 

5.  Conglomerates. 

6.  Shaly  and  green  variegated  sandstone. 

7.  Conglomerates,  at  least  five  hundred  feet. 

These  conglomerates  are  hard,  and  contain  many  angular 
fragments,  or  those  which  are  but  slightly  rounded;  and  some 
of  these  fragments  are  quite  similar  to  the  flinty  slate  below. 
Tne  beds  resemble  hard  gray  wackes  of  New  York,  except 
that  the  masses  of  rounded  quartz  are  much  larger.  The 
superior  beds  of  sandstone  occur  at  the  factory,  and  have 
been  employed  as  a  building  stone. 

§  106.  The  series  of  sandstones  which  lie  between  the 
bridge  and  the  conglomerates,  are  better  exposed  upon  Fac- 
tory creek,  about,  four  miles  from  Madison,  on  the  road  to 


151 


Martins'  lime   kilns.     The  latter  predominates   at  this  local- 
ity.    The  creek  has  uncovered  the  strata,  for  half  a  mile. 

The  section  upon  Factory  creek  is  represented  by  the  fol- 
lowing strata,  the  strike  of  which  is  S.  7U°  W.  dip  20°. 

1    Soft  greenish   slates  and  shales   above  the 
coal  slates. 

2.  Coarse  sandstone  with  pebbles. 

3.  Red  and  brown  sandstones. 

4.  Porous  red  sandstones,  or  sandstone  with 

angular  cavities,  similar  to  those  in  other 
rocks,  which  have  contained  a  soluble 
salt. 

5.  Green  and  gray  hard  sandstones. 

6.  Coarse  sandstones  containing  rounded  pel - 

hies. 

7.  Conglomerates  similar  to  those  at  Gov.  More- 

head's  factory,  at  Leaksville. 
8    Soft  sandstones,  like  the  red  marls. 
9.  Slates  with   quartz  veins,  dipping  beneath 

the  sandstones. 
The  thickness  of  the  series  above  the  coal 

slates,  is  between  four  and  five  thousand 

feet. 

At  Madison,  the  series  below  the  coal  slates,  on  the  East 
side  of  the  Dan,  at  the  new  bridge,  is  represented  by  the 
following  sections  : 

1.  Gneiss  dipping  beneath  the  sandstones. 

2.  Soft  variegated  sandstones,  with  mien,  and 

imperfectly  bedded  ;  at  least  two  hundred 
feet  thick,  east  of  the  site  of  the  bridge. 

3.  About    one   thousand    feet   of  green  shaly 

sandstone,  with  drab  colored  sandstone, 
interlaminated  with  the  series  ;  strike  N. 
65°  E.  angle  of  dip  45°. 

4.  Red  sandstones,  with  cavities. 

5.  Green  and  dark  colored  coal  shales. 


152 


§  106.  The  coal  has  been  exposed  about  four  i  dies  from 
Germanton,  on  the  plantation  of  Mr.  Mathews.  The  strata 
as  exposed,  are  arranged  in  the  following  older. 

1.  Slate  below. 

2.  Fire  clay. 

3.  Coal,  eighleen  inches, 

4.  Slaie,  one  foot. 

o.   Coal,  eighteen  inches. 

6.  Black  slate,  five  feet. 

7.  Sandstone  and  state. 

The  coal  at  the  outcrop  is  not  pure,  or  it  contains  some 
pyrites.  Still,  at  a  new  locality  on  this  plantation,  discovered 
by  Dr.  McClenahan,  at  the  time  of  our  visit,  the  prospecU 
are  better  than  at  the  shaft,  where  the  coal  was  first  taken 
out. 

The  attention,   which  has   been  given   to  the  Dan   River 

coal  field,  has  as  yet  been  too  inconsiderable,  to  develope  its 

riches.     It  appears,  that  fro.n  Leaksville  to  Germanton,  coal 

s  exposed  at    several  points,  besides  at  the   extremes  of  the 

formation,  leaving  out  of  view  its  extension  into  Virginia. 

§  107.  The  foregoing  descriptions  of  several  subordinate 
sections  will  convey  to  the  reader  a  correct  idea,  (so  far  as 
description  will  convey.)  of  the  conglomerates,  sandstones, 
and  slates  of  the  Dan  Ri\er  coal  field.  From  the  observa- 
tions which  I  have  made,  I  am  inclined  to  regaid  the  con- 
glomerate as  the  least  constant  mass,  and  the  most  variable 
in  its  characters.  It  exists  at  Germanton,  but  is  imperfectly 
developed  ;  whilst  at  Madison,  it  is  replaced  by  a  soft  mass 
of  the  red  sandstone. 

At  Leaksville,  and  also,  not  far  from  Madison,  this  series 
contains  some  remarkable  beds  of  brecciated  conglomerates 
which  are  probably  absent  or  wanting  upon  the  Deep  River. 

The  shales  or  marls,  appear  to  be  the  most  constant  mass. 
It  preserves  its  thickness  and  all  its  characters  unchanged, 


153 


and  most,  if  not  all  the  subordinate  beds,  are  developed,  both 
upon  (he  Dan  and  Deep  Rivers. 

The  fossils  in  variably  appear  wherever  the  slates  are  found  ; 
so,  also,  (he  impure  limestones,  with  their  concretions,  are 
equally  constant,  (hough  they  are  quite  inconsiderable  in 
mass.  In  the  Dan  River  coal  field,  (he  lower  rock  if  fully 
disclosed  is  much  thinner,  and  less  important,  than  the  same 
mass  in  the  Deep  River,  in  whkh,as  I  have  already  observed, 
the  slates  seem  (o  be  equal  in  importance  in  each.  The  con- 
glomerates of  Deep  River  are  very  prominent,  and  quite  im- 
portant. 

But,  if  we  compare  the  thickness  of  the  sandstone  above 
the  slates,  they  seem  to  be  thicker,  and  more  fully  developed 
upon  ihe  Dan.  I  am  also  inclined  to  estimate  the  entire 
thickness  of  the  sandstone  series,  as  greater  on  the  Dan,  thaa 
«pon  the  Deep  River. 


PRODUCTS  OF  THE  UPPPER  NEW  RED  SYSTEM, 
OR  TRIAS,  OF  TOE  DAN  AND  DEEP  RIVERS. 


§  108.  1.  FIRE  CLAY.— The  fire  clays  of  the  Trias  arc 
well  adapted  to  the  manufacture  of  fire  bricks.  The  clays 
connected  *\vith  coal  seams  have  long  been  used  for  this  pur 
pose  ;  and  hence  the  name,  ./fre  clay.  The  clays  being  free 
from  iron,  lime,  and  magnesia,  are  highly  refractory  in  the  fire; 
and  hence  are  well  adapted,  from  their  composition,  for  the  man- 
ufacture of  such  articles  as  are  required  or  designed  to  be  subject- 
ed to  a  high  heat.  The  seams  of  fire  clay  are,  in  a  few  in- 
stances, ten  feet  thick  ; — others  are  only  two  feet.  They  are 
always  found  in  seams,  subordinate  to  the  s'ate.  Some 
seams  of  fire  clay  do  not  bear  coal  at  their  outcrop.  The 
material  is  very  fine  and  even-grained  ;  the  silex  is  never 
coarse  or  concretionary.  The  only  obstacle  which  stands  in 


154 


the  way  of  mining  this  clay,  is,  that  it  often  becomes  hard  in 
the  deeper  parts  of  the  seam.  It  is  abundant  upon  the  Dan 
and  Deep  Rivers.  It  is  entirely  distinct  from  the  ordinary 
clays  of  the  country.  It  is  confined  to  this  formntion  ;  and 
is,  in  fact,  a  subordinate  part  of  it  :  and  is  never  absent,  it  ia 
said,  wherever  a  coal  seam  exists  : — though  it  may  occur,  and 
coal  be  absent.  It  appears  to  be  fine  enough  for  the  manu- 
facture of  articles  much  finer  than  fire  brick. 

2.  OXYDE  OF    IRON,    OR    ARGILLACEOUS   CARBONATE  OF 

IRON. — The  coal  series  appear  to  furnish  always  more  or  less 
of  this  variety  of  iron  ore.  It  occurs,  usually,  in  nodules, 
from  the  size  of  an  egg  up  to  a  barrel.  Generally,  their  form 
is  an  oval  or  flattened  sphere.  The  strata  are  part  s  of  the 
coal  series,  and  subordinate  to  the  formation,  and  are  depended 
upon,  to  a  great  extent,  for  the  supply  of  ore  for  iron.  Its 
qualities,  especially  when  manufactured  with  coal  from  the 
beds,  is  not  of  the  first  order  ;  but,  as  it  is  made  into  iron 
cheaply,  it  is  valuable  ore. 

3.  LIMESTONE. — The  limestone, 'which  has  hitherto  been 
exposed  in  mining,   is  of  an   inferior  quality,  and  only  small 
in  quantity.     The  layers  do  not  exceed  a  foot  in  thickness. 
At  the  Wilcox  Mine,  and  at  an  opening  on  the  plantation   of 
Mr.  Campbell,  on  Deep  River,  layers  of  tolerably  pure  gray 
and  granular  limestone  occur. 

The  seams  and  thin  beds  of  limestone  lying  in  and  divid- 
ing the  slate,  is  impure  from  silex,  and  is  probably  magne- 
sian.  Septana  are  formed  in  this  band,  which,  taking  the 
whole,  and  including  some  intervening  slate,  is  from  four  to 
five  feet  thick.  It  may  serve  a  good  purpose  in  making 
hydraulic  lime.  It  should  be  tried.  It  occurs  at  Leaksville 
and  Madison.  The  Deep  River  band,  though  it  occupies  ap. 
parently  the  same  position,  seems  to  be  more  silicious  than  at 
the  other  places  mentioned.  When  limestone  is  so  scarce, 
the  inferior  kinds  will  pay  for  burning;  and,  as  wood  is 
cheap,  there  can  be  little  risk  trying  the  lime  at  some  of  the 
localities,  both  for  agricultural  purposes,  and  hydraulic  ce- 
ment. 


155 


4.  PLASTER  AND  SALT. — The  first  has  not  been  found  at 
ail,  except  in  some  few  instances,  in  the  tertiary  clays. 

The  suit  is  frequently  a  mineral  subordinate  to  the  rocks  of 
this  series.  It  exists.  Some  of  the  waters  issuing  from  these 
sandstones  con  ain  a  small  quantity  of  sal', — muriate  of  soda, 
or,  more  properly,  chloiide  of  sodium.  1  have  obtained  it  in 
small  crystals,  by  evaporation.  The  question  of  the  exist- 
ence of  muriate  of  soda,  in  quantity,  can  only  be  settled  by 
boring1.  There  is  one  fact  which  seems  to  be  unfavorable  to 
its  presence  in  sufficient  quantities  to  become  valuable.  If 
the  indications  are  to  be  relied  upon,  the  rocks  were  deposited 
in  deep  water  ;  and  it  appears  (hat  salt  or  brine  springs  are 
more  commonly  found  in  those  which  are  formed  under  shal- 
low wafer,  and  where  the  water  itself  evaporates  under  tho 
sun  sufficiently  to  ciysiall/ze  out  of  the  liquid,  and  occasion, 
ally  leaves  a  large  area  uncovered  with  water.  But,  however 
this  may  be,  boring  is  justifiable  :  and,  as  numerous  places 
are  known  where  water  furnishes  salt,  the  expense  attending 
the  operation  will  not  form  a  serious  objection  to  such  a 
project. 

5.  FREE  STONE. — Dan  and  Deep  Rivers  both  furnish,  and 
may  furnish,  inexhaustible  quantities  of  free  stone,  admirably 
adapted  to  all  works  of  construction.     The  material  is  soft, 
when  first  removed  from  the  beds,  and  hence  is  easily  wrought 
into  suitable  forms  ;  it  hardens  by  exposure   to  the  weather, 
and  is  therefore  durable  ;  its  colors  are  bright,  and  the  stone 
is  therefore  beautiful. 

The  taste  and  fashions  of  the  times  give  a  preference  to 
building  stones  of  this  description  ;  but  durability  has  also 
had  something  to  direct  and  settle  public  opinion.  Chimneys 
\\hich  have  been  built  of  these  stones  have  stood  for  fifty 
winters  and  summers  ;  and  yet  (heir  corners  are  as  sharp  as 
ever.  Besides,  it  is  not  so  subject  to  acquire  mouluiness  as 
granite.  Granite,  like  some  poor  soils,  encourages  the  growth 
of  fungi;  b)i  giving  them  potash,  or  the  alkalis  ;  and  hence. 


156 

i 

building1,  made  of  smoothly  wrought  granite,  becomes  dingy, 
especially  if  shaded.  The  expense  of  working  free  stone  is 
much  less  than  granite.  Quarries  may  be  opened  on  or  neat 
the  navigable  waters. 

6.  GRINDSTONE. — The  kind  of  stone  which  is  predomin- 
ant is  a  sandstone.     The  grain  is  variable,  from  a  coarse  to 
a  very  fine  grit.     Among  the  grits,  that  kind  which  is  suit- 
able for  grindstones  is  common.     The  series  below  the  coal, 
as  well  as  those  above,  furnish  them.    Among  the  grits,  1  have 
observed  some  very  fine  ones   upon    the   south  side  of  Deep 
River,   not  far  from  Mr.  Campbell's.     They  appear  to  be 
adapted  !o  the    purpose   of  grinding  finer  cutlery.     Experi- 
ence, I  beli  v( ,  proves  the  value  of  these  stones  for  the  ordi 
nary  uses  of  the  farmer,  the  grinding  of  axes,  &c. 

Very  little  attention,  however,  has  been  given  to  inquiry 
respecting  the  best  beds.  Should  a  market  be  opened,  grind- 
stones  of  the  best  quality  can  be  obtained.  'J  heir  color  is 
both  brown  and  gray.  Their  grit  is  very  sharp,  and  the  grade* 
of  hardness  required  for  different  purposes  may  be  easily  sup- 
plied. 

7.  MILLSTONES. — I  am  not  sufficiently  well  informed,  a? 
to  what  state  of  perfection  the  millstones  of  Deep  River  may 
be  brought.     They  are    among  the    best  stones  for  grinding 
corn.      Whether  art  can  make  them   best,  or  as  good  as  the 
French  burr  stones,  will  be    better  determined  by  those  ac- 
quainted with  the  manufactory  of  them   than  myself.     They 
are  esteemed    for  corn,   and   this   fact  has  given  them  creak 
and  a  market  to  almost  any  extent  ;  and  it  will  increase,  pro- 
vided means   of  cheap  transport   are  provided  :    as  they  can 
be   furnished    much    cheaper   than  French  burr  stone,  and 

are  equally  good  for  some  purposes. 

§  8,  SHALE. — The  slate  of  the  coal  series,  being  fragile, 
and  easily  decomposed,  may  be  employed  upon  the  soil,  ns  a 
fertilizer.  It  is  composed  of  alumina,  silex,  a  little  lime, 
phosphate  of  lime,  and  some  potash. 


157 


Those  layers,  which  abound  in  the  cypris,  and  posidonia, 
are  richest  in  phosphate  of  lime. 

The  composition  adapts  the  use  of  it  to  sandy  or  loamy 
soils  ;  and,  though  I  do  not  venture  to  recommend  their  trans- 
portation far,  yet,  on  the  plantations,  which  have  a  poor  soil, 
which  are  adjacent  to  this  marl,  it  will  pay  well  for  hauling. 
It  should  he  ground  and  sown  freely,  broad  cast.  These 
slates  contain  many  hard  oval  bodies,  which  consist  of  silica, 
lime,  and  phosphate  of  lime:  the  latter,  in  the  proportion  of 
more  than  one  half.  These  long  oval  bodies  are  the  excre- 
ments of  fish,  or  liz  irds,  which  swarmed  in  the  sea,  in  the 
days  during  the  deposit  of  the  system. 

The  recommendation  is  en«o  tinged  on  the  ground,  that 
fertilizers  are  expensive  in  that  region  of  country  vvhe-'e  this 
formation  exists;  and  if  it  should  be  found  useful,  the 
country  through  which  these  shales  pass,  can  be  supplied,  to 
any  extent  which  is  desirable. 

It  is  rare,  that  a  formation,  which  looks  so  tmpiomising 
on  its  first  ar.qaintance,  should  turn  out  so  rich  in  products, 
which  will  encourage  industry  and  contribute  so  much  to  the 
advancement  of  wealth  and  prosperity. 

The  English  new  red  sandstone,  which  is  certainly  closely 
allied  to  this  formation,  supports  no  less  than  nineteen  large 
cities.  It  is  true,  that  in  that  country,  rock  salt  is  one  of  the 
products  of  the  red  sandstone  formation,  which  has  been  dis- 
covered here;  but  there  is  coal,  which  is  still  betttr,  and  which 
can  promote  the  wealth  of  the  Dan  and  Deep  Rivers,  to  a  far 
greater  extent,  than  salt  alone.  The  climate,  and  the 
health  of  the  country,  too,  is  in  its  favor.  The  navigable 
waters,  or  thos?  susceptible  of  being  made  so  ;  the  value 
of  the  forests,  in  pines  and  oaks  ;  the  iron  ;  all  of  which 
mark  the  Dan  and  Deep  River,  places  these  districts,  in  a 
position,  equal  to  that  of  the  country  referred  to,  and  if  that 
can  support  and  cherish  the  inhabitants  of  nineteen  cities, 
certainly,  this  formation  should  give  origin  at  least  to  four 
or  five  large  and  flourishing  towns. 

A  careful  survey  of  our  own  country,  and  others  abroad,  ac- 
companied with  an  inquiry  into  the  causes  of  the  rise  of  cities 


158 


and  towns,  will  probably  show,  that  those  causes  are  mainly 
geological.  It  will  show,  thru,  the  productsof  the  soil  and  the 
mine  lie  at  the  foundation  of  all  the  operations  which  have 
given  rise  to  their  establishment  and  subsequent  prosperity. 
PiUsburg,  in  Pennsylvania,  owes  her  origin  to  the  iron 
and  coal  in  her  neighborhood.  Rochester,  in  New  York, 
owes  her  origin  to  the  peculiar  rocks  there,  whose  constitu- 
tion produces  the  Falls  upon  the  Genessee,  at  this  place,  and 
those  peculiar  rocks  give  the  surrounding  country  a  wheat 
soil.  Upon  these  facts,  fRoch  ester  has  become  one  of  the 
most  flourishing  cities  in  the  Union  ;  and  yet  all  these  causes 
are  geological.  Deep  River  and  the  Dan  have  all  these  ad- 
vantages and  more. 


REASONS  WHY  THE  NEW  RED  SANDSTONES 

OF  THIS  COUNTRY  DIFFER  FiiOM  THOSE 

OF  EUROPE. 


§  109.  The  new  red  sandstone,  in  England,  is  underlaid 
by  limestones,  or  calcareous  rocks,  to  a  greater  or  less  ex- 
tent. Some  of  them  are  magnesia  ;  and  hence,  in  the  series^ 
one  of  the  members  is  strongly  marked,  and  is  known  as 
the  magnesia  limestone.  The  origin  and  source  of  the 
materials  appear  to  be  entirely  different ;  and  hence,  the 
lithological  character  of  th3  series;  and  new  red  sandstone 
is  quite  different,  at  least  in  its  subordinate  parts. 


159 


In  the  United  States,  the  materials  are  deficient  in  lime  and 
lyscer.csifc  ;  and  on  account  of  the  presence  of  certain  minerals 
t'ilhiJu:  in  the  waters,  and  forming  deposits,  and  thereby 
imparting  a  character  to  the  whole  sen, — these  circumstan- 
ces cannot  fail  to  influence  both  animal  and  vegetable  life; 
The  sea-bottom  will  favor,  or  it  will  be  unfriendly  to  the 
existence  of  certain  species.  To  facts  of  this  kind  \ve 
may  look  for  an  explanation  of  certain  modifications  which 
are  known  to  exist  in  the  fossils  of  those  rocks. 

The  marl  slates  resemble   those  of  the  Permian  system. 
In  Germany,  they  contain  copper.     Here,  they  are  entirely 
destitute  of  copper.     In  other  respects,  they  aie  quite  simi- 
lar.    While  it  cannot  be  proved  that  rocks  which  contain 
the  coal  of  Deep  and  Dan  Rivers  are  Permian  ;  still  reasons 
are  not  wanting  which  favor  this  view :  though  the  Rich- 
mond coal  field  is  now  regarded  as  belonging  to  the  Oolite. 
I  am,  however,  upon  the  whole,  and  on  consideration  of  all 
the   facts,  inclined  to  adopt  the   opinion,  that  the  whole 
series   belongs   to  the   upper   new  red  sandstone.     I   am 
sure  the  great  abundance  of  coal  favors  the  view  that  this 
series  should  be  regarded  as  Permian.     So,  also,  the  tooth  of 
the  Thecodontosaurus,  or  a  saurian  closely  allied  to  it — but 
the  most  abundant  fossil,  the   posidonia  minuta,  (Goldf.) 
favors  more  strongly  the  opinion  I  have  adopted  under  the 
existing  facts. 


160 


MISCELLANEOUS  NOTICES    OF    MINERAL    DE- 
POSITS AND  VEINS. 

IRON  ORE. — In  Nash  County,  I  visited  a  deposit  of  Iron 
which  had  been  worked,  but  now  abandoned.  It  resem- 
bles the  bog  ores  ;  should  be  classed  with  them  ;  being 
simply  a  superficial  deposit,  of  no  great  depth.  This,  in 
fact,  is  of  no  value.  It  is  one  of  those  formations  which, 
1  believe,  has  originated  from  ancient  mineral  springs, 
whose  waters  were  charged  with  bicarbonate  of  iron:  or  an 
oxyde  held  in  solution  in  a  carbonated  water.  When 
combinations  of  this  character  reach  the  surface,  the  car- 
bonic acid  escapes.  When  the  iron  is  no  longer  soluble 
in  water,  it  is  precipitated  upon  the  surface.  There  will 
then  be  found  a  deposit  of  oxyde  of  iron,  intermixed  with 
clay,  sand,  &c.  Some  of  these  deposits  may  contain  suffi. 
cient  iron  to  become  valuable ; — this  will  not.  The  extent 
should  be  determined  by  sounding  with  a  slender  bar  of 
iron  or  steel,  before  expenditures  are  made. 

MAGNETIC  ORE,  IN  GUILFORD  COUNTY. — Magnetic  ore 
of  a  fine  quality,  exists  at  Mr.  C.  Coffin's,  ten  miles  from 
Greensboro'.  It  is  free  from  sulphate  of  iron.  It  had  not 
been  examined,  when  I  visited  it,  in  a  shaft.  The  surface 
ore  presents  a  favorable  indication  of  two  or  more  veins  of 
a  fine  quality. 

SPECULAR  ORE,  ON  THE  PLANTATION  OF  WM.  JONES. — 
This  ore  is  also  a  fine  kind  of  this^species  ;  but  its  extent 
has  not  been  determined  by  actual  exploration. 


161 


SPECULAR  ORE  o\  THE  PLANTATION  OP  MR.  GLASS. 
This  location  is  six  m;les  north  of  Evans's  Mills.  I  regard 
this  as  the  peroxyde,  or  the  specular  ore  ;  as  it  is  un-mag- 
netic,  and  gives  a  red  streak.  It  is  abundant,  and,  being: 
in  the  vicinity  of  water  power,  it  will  come  into  use  when 
the  Deep  River  improvements  are  completed. 


STITH'S  CUPPER  MINE,  IN  GUIL 


,FQRD. 

time.  iBfft 


§  111.  It  has  been  known  for  a  very  long  time,iBh  the 
auriferous  pyrites  consisted  in  part  of  the  sulphuret  of  iron, 
and,  in    part,   of  the  sulphuret   of  copper.     In  extracting 
the  gold  from  the  sulphurets,  the  latter  has  been  neglected 
and  allowed  to  rlow  away  in  the  washings.     Lately,  how- 
ever, attempts  have  been  made,  not  only  to  save  the  copper 
of  the  auriferous  pyrites,  but  to  work  the  veins  exclusively 
for  copper.     Stith's  mine  had  been  worked  for  its  gold  for 
many  years.     It   was  profitable  ;  but  its  owner,  Mr.  Fen- 
tress,  had  given  up  the  business  of  working  it  for  gold,  and 
it  was   lying  useless  to  himself,  when  Mr.  Stith  proposed 
working  the  sulphuret  for  copper.     Two  shafts  had  been 
sunk  upon   the  vein,  at   a  distance  of  316  feet  j  and,  for 
some  distance  from  each  shaft,  the  ore  had  been  removed 
and  worked  for  gold.    The  vein  runs  N.  30  degrees  E. ;  dip 
N.  W.     At  the  depth  of  almost  72  feet,  the  vein  of  pyrites 
is  divided  into  two,  [a  flat  vein,  which  dips  about5  degrees, 
and  a  vein  dipping  between  60  and  70  degrees.]     The  flat 
vein  consists  of  a  gangue  of  quartz,  arranged   somewhat 
in  columns,  and  the  vein  of  sulphuret,  ranging  in  with  from 
4  to  12  inches  :  the  whole  width  of  the  quartz  and  copper 
is  from  2J  to  5  feet.     This  flat  vein  dips  towards  the  steep 
dipping  vein,  and  finally  becomes    incorporated    with   it, 
when  it  becomes  the  main  and  important  vein  of  the  mine. 
11 


162 


The  progress  of  the  work  becomes  more  and  more  favora- 
ble, and  a  fine  vein  of  sulphuret  of  copper  is  likely  to  be 
disclosed,  and,  indeed,  is  so,  by  the  present  operations. 
The  double  sulphurets  are  changed  to  the  single  suiphurets, 
and  it  is  found  to  yield  from  32  to  40  per  cent,  of 
copper.  The  mine  is  valuable,  and  its  success  will  operate 
favorably  in  producing  a  change  in  the  working  of  the 
auriferous  pyrites.  The  probability  is,  that  many  others, 
in  which  the  copper  has  been  lost,  from  ignorance  of  the 
value  of  the  substance,  will  be  worked  so  as  to  save  the 
copper,  or  to  work  them  as  copper  mines  exclusively. 


LIMESTONE. 

§  112.  The  great  value  and  importance  of  limestone  has 
created  a  demand  for  it,  both  as  an  article  essential  in  con- 
struction, as  well  as  in  agriculture.  In  a  very  large  part 
of  North  Carolina,  this  rock  seems  to  be  absent,  and  hence 
it  has  been  difficult  to  supply  lime  sufficient  only  to  meet 
the  ordinary  wants  ot  the  community.  It  has  been  always 
too  expensive  to  warrant  its  employment  for  agriculture, 
and  much  of  the  loss  in  agricultural  products  maybe  at- 
tributed to  the  scarcity  and  expense  of  lime.  Probably  all 
the  soils  of  this  State  will  be  benefit  ted  by  the  application, 
of  lime.  I  have  visited  only  the  two  well  known  localities 
of  limestone  in  Stokes,  the  limestone  belonging  fo  Mr.  Mar- 
tin of ,  and  Mr.  Bolejaek  of  Germanton.  These 

beds  of  limestone  belong  to  thepyro  crystalline  rocks.  The 
stratification  of  Mr.  Martin's  beds  is  quite  obscure,  while 
that  of  Mr.  Bolejack's  is  quite  distinct.  Both  belong  to  the 
same  kind  of  rocks. 


163 


The  thicknes?  of  both  exceeds  forty  feet,  and  lie  between 
strata  of  coarse  talcose  slates — or  talco-micaceous  slate. 
Both  beds  make  good  lime.  These  beds  may  become  in 
the  hands  of  enterprising  men  both  profitable  to  the  owners 
and  highly  the  useful  to  community .  Mr.  Bolejack's  is  located 
very  conveniently  for  cheap  mining,  and  wood  being  abun- 
dant and  cheap,  I  have  no  doubt  it  may  be  furnished  at  15 
cents  per  bushel  and  perhaps  12J.  At  those  prices  tha  far- 
mer can  afford  to  use  lime. 

The  beds  seem  to  be  in  range  with  others  crossing  the 
State  from  N.  E.  to  South  West. 


SOME  OF  THE  GEOLOGICAL  CHARACTERISTICS 
OF  THE  SLATES  OF  STOKES,  SITRRY,  &c. 


The  predominant  rock  of  these  Counties  is  Talcose  Slates 
with  a  variety  which  may  be  called  talco-micaceous  slate. 
The  rock  has  the  usual  silvery  lustre,  and  thin  lamination, 
which  is  frequently  undulating.  The  rock  is  generally  cov- 
ered with  soil.  The  ridges  and  mountains  are  sharp  and 
narrow,  and  present  in  out  line  a  singular  and  picturesque 
appearance.  This  is  especially  the  case  with  the  Pilot 
mountain.  From  Germanton  and  other  points,  it  presents 
the  appearance  of  a  high  isolated  rounded  knob,  bearing 
upon  its  summit  a  square  tower.  Seen  from  the  residence 
of  its  owner,  Mr.  Guillam,  it  becomes  a  sharp  ridge  sur- 
mounted by  two  pinnacles — the  eastern  the  greater  of  the 
two.  The  mountain  sides  are  steep  and  precipitous.  The 
pinnacles  are  bounded  by  perpendicular  sides.  The  highest 
and  most  prominent  one  is  ascended  by  means  of  ladders, 
and  rises  about  70  feet  above  the  crest  of  the  mountain. 


164 


These  magnificent  pinnacles  have  been  formed  by  a  very 
simple  geological  operation.     The   rocks   were   thrust  up- 
wards in  such  a  manner  as  to  produce  a  decided  curvature 
of  the  crest  of  the  mountain,  and  so  much  of  a  curvature,  as 
to  produce  a  cross  fracture  of  the  strata  between  the  pinna- 
cles, which  are  250  yards  apart.     The  slow  operation  of  at. 
mospheric  agents  have   done   the    rest      These   operations 
consisted  in  the  disintegration  of  the  softer  slates,  especial- 
ly along  the  line  of  parture  between  the  pinnacles.  The  un- 
dermined strata  form  the  debris  of  the  mountain  sides.  The 
harder  strata  of  the  pinnacles  have   withstood  the  action  of 
the  elements,  and  will  stand  and  battle  them  for  thousands  o^ 
years  to  come.     The  strata  of  the  pinnacles  differ  from  each 
other.     Some  of  the  strata  consist  of  pure  granular  quartz, 
especially  those  which  form   the   pinnacles.     These  strata, 
however,  should  not  be  regarded  as  a  sandstone,  but  simply 
a  very  quartzose  variety  of  talcose    slate.     The   Pilot  and 
other  mountains  of  the  range   belong  to  the  first  and   most 
easterly  of  the  Blue  Ridge  or  Alleghanies  ;  but  unlike  other 
ridges,  they  are    steepest   on    the    eastern  slope.     The  Pi- 
ot  mountain    is  one  of  the  greatest  places  in  North  Carolina. 
Nature  has  performed  a  work  here,   which  seems  to    have 
been  designed  to  give  health  and  pleasure  to  those  who  have 
become  debilitated  or  worn  down  under  the  burning  and  sul- 
try atmosphere  of  the  South.     It  is  a  pity,  when  so  little  is 
left  to  be  done,  to  make  the  Pilot  a   place  of  great  resort, 
nothing  but  a  rough  path  way  and  a  few  ladders  have  yet 
been  contributed  to  promote  objects  of  so  much  importance. 
The  geological  structure  of  much  of  North  Carolina  >s  char- 
acterized by  low  anticlynal    and   synclynal  axes.     Some  of 
the  synclynal  are  deep  and  form  troughs  in  which  the  coal 
fields  lie.     The  axes  are  formed  by  normal  dips,  being  equal 
on  both  sides  of  the  rounded  ridge. 


165 


CONCLUSION. 

1  hire  introduced  a  greater  amount  of  elementary  matter 
perhaps,  than  is  required  in  a  simple  Report,  designed  to  give 
a  statement  of  what  has  been  done  to  carry  out  the  plan  of 
the  survey.  I  have  done  this  because  many  of  the  persons 
into  \vh'"»se  hands  this  report  will  fall,  wish  something  of  the 
kind.  Much  of  the  elementary  matter  of  the  foregoing  re- 
port iiris  been  published  before,  but  I  have  proposed  to  make 
a  direct  application  of  these  elements  to  the  agriculture  of 
the  State. 

The  State  of  North  Carolina  might  be  divided  into  two 
great  districts,  the  Agricultural  and  Mining — the  former 
embraces  those  Counties  which  lie  immediately  upon  the 
Atlantic  slope,  extending  to  the  first  fall  of  the  rivers,  where 
they  enter  the  tertiary  formation.  The  latter  embraces  all 
west  of  these  falls.  While  the  former,  however,  is  eminent, 
ly  agricultural,  the  latter  is  both  agricultural  and  mining. — 
Usually,  a  mining  district  is  rough  and  comparatively  un- 
productive :  here,  however,  while  mining  gives,  or  is  capa- 
ble of  giving,  magnificent  return,  the  agricultural  is  equally 
productive  with  other  districts.  The  means  of  living  are 
therefore  cheap,  and  while  a  portion  of  its  citizens  are  en- 
gaged in  those  pursuits  which  neither  make  a  blade  of  grass, 
or  potatoes  grow,  yet  their  labor  always  secures  an  abun- 
dance of  bread  and  meat  from  the  very  surface  beneath  which 
the  mineral  wealth  is  drawn. 

In  pursuing  the  work  up  to  the  present  time,  I  have 
scarcely  touched  upon  the  mining  wealth  of  the  State.  The 
most  I  have  attempted  to  do,  is  to  to  develop  the  value  of 
the  coal  mines.  The  gold,  copper,  lead  and  iron  mines,  1 
propose  t3  examine  the  ensuing  year. 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact,  that,  while  lead  and  zinc  are  com- 
paratively rare,  gold  and  silver  are  abundant.  I  had  occa- 
sion to  notice  a  fact  of  like  kind,  in  my  Report  of  the 


166 


Geology  of  New  York.  In  the  Northern  Counties  of  that 
State,  iron  is  the  great  mining  product  ;  it  is  accompanied 
with  neither  copper,  lead,  zinc  or  gold.  I  mean  that  it  pre- 
ponderates over  every  other  metal.  Iron  occupies  an  im- 
portant place  in  North  Carolina  ;  and  I  may  here  say  that 
the  advantages  for  making  bar  iron  of  the  best  quality  are 
very  great.  The  ore  in  the  first  place  is  abundant  and  of 
an  excellent  quality  ;  and  in  the  second  place,  wood  for 
charcoal  is  equally  abundant,  and  as  the  growth  of  trees  is 
rapid,  fuel  will  never  fail  if  system  is  observed  in  its  cutting 
and  preservation  of  young  timber.  The  resources  of  the 
forest  in  North  Carolina  are  immense,  notwithstanding  a 
terrible  disease  has  infested  certain  portions  of  it  for  some 
time  past.  The  famous  long  leaf  pine  is  a  magnificent 
tree  of  the  forest.  It  yields  its  turpentine  and  rosin  in  pro- 
fusion— one  of  the  great  staples  of  the  South  ;  its  leaf  makes 
an  elegant  hat,  its  cone  an  ornamental  basket,  its  heart  the 
most  durable  of  posts,  and  its  wood  the  cheerful  fire  and 
light,  both  of  the  kitchen  and  parlor.  The  great  variety  of 
Oaks  and  Walnut  are  no  less  important.  The  Tulip  in  beau- 
ty is  rarely  excelled,  and  the  Magnolia  among  the  trees  of 
the  forest  is  like  a  gigantic  rose. 

The  water  power  is  also  immense.  The  improvements 
on  Deep  River  and  Cape  Fear  will  furnish  water  for  sever- 
al Lowells.  In  fine,  the  elements  of  wealth  and  prosperity 
have  been  dealt  out  with  a  liberal  hand,  and  its  people  have 
only  to  put  forth  their  energy  and  enterprize.  to  stand  with 
the  first  States  in  this  repubiic. 


167 


DRIFT-DILUVIAL   ACTION. 


§  116.  In  the  Northern  Stales  and  Canada,  the  surface  of 
the  country  is  overspread  with  a  coating  of  soil  stones,  gravel 
boulders,  etc.,  which  are  foreign  to  spots  and  places  upon 
which  they  now  rest.  These  materials  have  been  transpoit- 
ed  from  distant  points,  either  North,  or  Northeast,  from  the 
spots  we  now  find  them,  and,  in  many  cases,  more  than  one 
hundred  miles  from  their  parent  beds.  F  wish  merely  to  al- 
lude to  this  fact.  It  is  a  practical  one";  for,  as  the  surface  has 
not  been  disturbed,  and  as  the  disintegrations  of  rocks  have 
gone  on  quietly,  the  debris  remain  in  place.  Hence,  a  mass 
of  iron  ore,  or  of  copper,  gold,  etc.,  which  lies  upon  the  sur- 
face and  in  the  debris,  the  parent  bed  or  vein  of  each,  will  be 
found  below,  or  at  most,  but  a  short  distance  from  the  spot ; 
wheieas,  at  the  North,  it  is  common  to  find  a  mass  of  iron  ore 
which  is  one  hundred  miles  from  its  bed  or  vein.  In  the  lat- 
ter instance,  we  know  only  the  direction  the  mass  has  been 
transported,  [n  North  Carolina,  we  may  always  expect  to 
find  the  ore  in  the  immediate  vicinity  in  which  it  is  found, 
except  in  those  cases  where  the  loose  mass  has  been  removed 
by  aqueous  causes  now  in  operation. 


168 


[As  I  was  unable  to  incorporate  the  observations  and  remarks 
of  Dr.  McClenahan,  one  of  my  assistants,  with  my  own, 
I  deem  it  proper  to  give  them  a  separate  place  in  the  re- 
port. They  are,  as  will  be  seen,  addressed  to  me  in  the 
form  of  a  letter.  They  were  made  during  my  absence 
from  the  field,  and  while  engaged  in  the  laboratory  :] 

LETTER  OF  DR.  McCLENAHAN. 

DEAR  SIR  : 

After  parting  with  you  at  Goldsborough,  and  arri- 
ving on  the  Coal  Field,  I  commenced  the  survey  of  the 
underlying  sandstone,  at  Captain  Elias  Bryan's,  on  the, 
Deep  River,  one  mile  above  Hay  wood.  The  dip  at  that 
point  is  South,  45  degrees  East,  at  an  angle  of  20  degrees  :  the 
strike  South,  45  degrees  West.  The  sandstone  and  con- 
glomerate are  both  properly  exposed  at  this  place,  the  sand- 
stone resting  immediately  on  the  conglomerate.  I  commen- 
ced by  running  South, 45  degrees  West,  to  Womble's  :  thence 
across  the  Hay  wood  road,  by  Mrs.  Gilmour's  :  thence  by 
Mrs.  Reddle's  :  thence  due  West,  to  Mathew  Wicker's,  (dis- 
tant from  the  starting  point,  ten  miles)  :  thence  North,  35 
degrees  West,  crossing  the  river,  to  Watson's,  on  the  North 
side  of  the  river  :  thence  North,  70  degrees  West,  to  Burns' 
Spring  :  thence  due  West,  by  J.  Hasley's  :  thence  South, 
50  degrees  West,  by  Richard  Dowd's  :  thence  South,  55  de- 
grees West,  by  John  Dowd's  :  thence  South,  45  degrees 
West,  crossing  Indian  Creek  just  above  William  Hays'  : 
thence  South,  50  degrees  West,  to  Deep  River,  in  Mrs. 
Street's  plantation  :  thence  South,  60  degrees  West,  crossing 
the  river  to  the  mouth  of  William  Hancock's  lane,  in  Moore 
county  :  thence  South,  45  degrees  West,  to  Sewel's  quarry 
of  conglomerate  :  thence  by  Davis'  quarry  :  thence  by  Neil 
Dunlap's  :  thence  by  Allen  McDaniel's  :  thence  by  Jesse 
Thomas',  on  Drowning  Creek,  in  Montgomery  county  : 
thence  South,  60  degrees  West,  by  Calvin  Rush's,  on  Moun- 
tain Creek  :  thence  South,  45  degrees  West,  by  David  Har- 


169 


riss'  :  thence  by  Lucas'  store  :  thence  by  John  C.  Cham- 
bers' :  thence  across  Little  River,  two  miles  above  Steel's 
bridge,  in  Richmond  county  :  thence  across  Pe-Dee  River,  at 
the  mouth  of  Brown's  Creek,  in  Anson  county  .  thence  up 
the  Northwest  side  of  Brown's  Creek,  by  the  Carolina  Col- 
lege :  thence  South,  60  degreed  West,  to  the  South  Caiolina 
l-ie,  in  the  Southeastern  corner  of  Union  county.  1  took 
Cross  sections,  at  nearly  all  the  public  roads  which  crossed  the 
Sandstone  transversely,  and  found  it  varying:  in  width,  from 
;  vjt  to  fourteen  miles.  1  frequently  got  the  dip  where  the 

.ie  was  well  exposed,  and  it  varies  from  10  degrees  to  60. 
*  ^Iso  made  cross  sections  fiorn  six  coal  pits,  oul  to  the  out 

p  of  the  underlying  sandstone,  and  found  it  varying  from 
mile  and  three-fourths,  to  three  miles  :   the   greater  the 

>,  the  shorter  the  distance. 

After  running  the  line,  to  the  South  Carolina  line,  1  return- 
til  to  the  starting  point  (Capi.  E.  Aryan's),  and  commenced 
t*  lining  Northeast,  across  Deep  and  Haw  Rivers,  one  mile 
Itvthwest  of  the  town  of  Hay  wood  :  thence  North,  30  de- 
grees East,  by  Willam  Crump's  and  William  Bland 'a  :  thence 
bg  Neill  Womble's,  in  whose  field  the  conglomerate  is  well  ex 
posed  :  thence  by  Mrs.  Amsled's,  on  New  Hope  Creek : 
thence  across  the  creek,  by  William  Clark's,  Thos. Womble's, 
John  Eland's,  Causby  Stone's,  in  whose  plantation  it  again 
crosses  the  Creek  :  thence  up  the  Northeast  side  of  the  Creek, 
but  occasionally  crossing  and  re-crossing,  by  Mooring's,  by 
Herndon's  old  store>  in  Orange  county:  thence  by  Pratt 's 
store,  crossing  the  Central  Railroad  half  a  mile  Northwest  of 
the  store  :  thence  across  Eno  and  Flat  River,  in  Benehan's 
plantation  ;  after  which,  it  could  be  but  indistinctly  traced. 
Although  this  is  the  direction  of  the  great  body  of  the  stone, 
there  is,  occasionally,  points  which  run  off  in  various  direc- 
tions :  one  of  the  principal  poin'.s  which  make  off  in  this  way, 
is  one  that  continues  up  New  Hope,  to  Morgan's  creek,  and 
up  that  creek  to  within  two  miles  of  Chapel  Hill. 

There  is  a  formation  of  sandstone  on  Tau  River.  I  saw  it 
at  Thos.  Miller's  plantation,  six  or  seven  miles  Southwest  of 
Oxford.  I  had  understood  that  coal  had  been  found  there  ; 


170 


but,  when  I  examined  the  spot,  which  is  in  the  river  bank,  I 
found  it  to  be  lignite.  I  have  samples  of  it  in  Raleigh,  and 
also  of  the  micaceous  sandstone  in  which  it  is  embedded.  My 
attention  has  been  frequently  culled  to  the  subject  of  lime, 
and  I  have  been  frequently  told,  that  there  was  limestone  on 
certain  lands,  which  1  was  going  to  examine  ;  but,  as  yet,  I 
have  not  been  enabled  to  discover  lime  in  sufficient  quantities 
to  render  it  of  much  value,  East  of  Germantoa.  1  have  seen 
small  deposit es  of  limestone  in  the  upper  stratum  of  what  I 
have  called  the  newer  red  sandstone.  I  found  it  at  Mr.  Fow- 
ler's, in  Chatham,  near  Mooring's,  and  on  the  Hillsborough 
road,  near  Brassfield's,  sixteen  miles  from  Raleigh,  and  itv 
Granville  county,  on  the  plantation  of  Mr.  Worthara  :  it  isi>v 
greater  abundance  at  this  point  than  at  any  I  noticed.  Mr 
Wortham  has  hauled  out  on  his  farm  a  considerable  qunntitv 
of  it,  and  informed  me  that  the  land  on  which  he  spread  it  j 
produced  much  better.  Lime  in  great  abundance,  and  of 
excellent  quality,  is  found  stretching  across  the  State,  from 
Danbury,  in  Stokes  county,  to  King's  Mountain,  in  South 
Carolina.  I  saw  it  at  Williams'  kiln,  on  the  Yadkin,  at 
PofT  's,  ten  miles  above  Salem,  at Hoosertown,  at  Germanton? 
and  at  Martin's,  near  the  Virginia  line.  I  procured  a  piece 
near  Germanton,  at  Mr.  Bolejack's,  which  is  an  excellent 
marble,  and  receives  a  fine  polish.  The  quantity  of  limestone 
at  this  point,  appears  to  be  inexhaustible,  and  of  good 
quality  ;  in  fact}  all  the  lime  I  saw  at  all  the  kilns  appeared 
to  be  of  good  quality.  I  have  procured  samples  of  the  stone 
from  all  the  kilns,  for  your  inspection.  This  section  of  the 
State  abounds  in  iron  ore  of  good  quality.  I  have  specimens 
from  several  places.  Magnetic  iron  ore  of  good  quality  is 
found  two  miles  West  of  the  Pilot  Mountain,  on  the  lands  of 
Mr.  Guillam.  I  examined  the  place  and  saw  it  scattered  oveif 
a  large  surface. 

After  examining  the  limestone,  I  commenced  the  survey  of 
the  coal  field  on  the  Dan  River.  I  commenced  at  German - 
ton  :  the  out  crop  of  sandstone  is  near  that  place.  The  dip 
is  Northwest,  at  an  angle  of  35  degrees,  and  the  strike  North- 
east. I  was  able  to  trace  the  out  crop  of  sandstone  as  far  a° 


171 


Madisoa,  and  have  procured  samples  of  the  coal  and  slate,  at 
various  points  ;  but,  in  consequence  of  high  waters,  I  was 
unable  to  ascertain  the  thickness  of  the  coal  seam.  The  fos- 
sils  are  of  *  he  same  kind  we  find  on  the  Deep  River,  but  the 
coal  is  anthracite.  I  should  have  continued  the  survey  down 
fa  Iv^k^viHe,  or  as  far  as  the  coal  continued  in  the  State,  but 
Ler. 

crop  of  black  shale,  on  the  coal  field,  is  in  great 
•&*u ;  and  the  direction  of  the  seams  can  easily  be  tra-, 
fiie  end  of  the  field  to  I  he  other,  with  the  appropriate 
ATeal.  abundance.     I   found  but  few  points  on  the 
coal  field,  South  of  Deep  River,  where  the  shale 
V**  easily  traced.     I  found  it  on  Drowning  Creek,  in 
-*uvy  county,  about  one  mile  Northwest  of  the  sand- 
.A .,  wtah   contains   lignite  :   the   dip  at  this  point  is  not 
fcfr%v  10  degrees.     I  also  found  it  at  the  Pe-Dee  River, 
fcto*tation  of  Mrs.  McCloud. 

^|«aing  with  you  at  Halifax,  I  visited  the  Northwes- 
of  Edgecombe  county,  for  the  purpose  of  ascer- 
ft*  truth  of  what  I  had  heard  of  a  large  skeleton 
•  mbedded  in  Fishing  Creek.  I  ascertained  it  to  be 
^  ttm*«ti£  of  an  enormous  whale,  some  of  the  vertebrae  of 
which  cifeaBiiied  twenty-two  inches  in  diameter.  It  had  been 
so  much  mulilated,  that  I  was  deterred  from  attempting  to 
disinter  but  a  small  portion  of  it.  I  learned  from  the  gentle- 
man, who  owns  the  land  in  which  it  is  embedded,  that  the 
largest  portion  of  the  bones  had  been  taken  away  by  various 
persons,  some  of  whom  lived  at  a  great  distance  ;  and  he  also 
informed  me  that  a  large  number  of  the  bones  had  been 
washed  away  by  the  "  freshets."  I  ascertained,  by  finding 
one  or  two  vertebree  in  place, that  the  animal  had  been  deposi- 
ted on  his  back,  and  as  the  water  is  not  more  than  two  or 
three  feet  above  the  vertebrae,  which  is  just  covered  with  marl 
and  sand,  I  could  readily  account  for  the  absence  of  all  the 
ribs,  by  freshets,  which  swept  them  down  the  stream. 

This  animal  is  lying  on  a  bed  of  marl,  -vhich  is  twelve  or 
fifteen  feet  thick,  and  the  silicious  shelly  limestone,  which  is 
found  between  the  green  sand  and  shell  marl,  is  just  above 


172 


the  remains :  above  that  is  a  bed  of  yellow  sand  and  shell 
marl,  which  is  about  seven  or  eight  feet  thick.     Mr.  Knight, 
the  gentleman  who  owns  the  lands,  told  me  that  there  was  a 
portion  of  the  head  still  embedded  in  the  bank,  and  but  for 
the  rise  which  took  place  in  the  creek,  while  I  was  there,  I 
should  have  procured  it.     The  animal  lay  diagonally  across 
the  creek — the  head  in  Edgecombe  and  the  tail  in  Halifax, 
the  creek  being  the  line  dividing  the  two  counties.     I  picked 
up  a  good  many  of  the  bones,  and  requested  Mr.  Knight  to 
take  care  of  them  lor  me,  which  he  promised  to  do,  and  gave 
me  the  balance,  if  I  could  procure  them.     I  procured  someo^ 
the  marl  below  the  remains,  and  some  of  the  upper  bed,  wlii 
is  above  it.     I  also  procured  a  specimen  of  the  shell  re  t  K 
which  is  between  the  two  beds.     1  have  a  piece  of  the  j; 
bone  in  Raleigh,  which  I  got  out  of  the  water  near  the  sp  *  V 
where  Mr.  Knight  told  me  the  head  was  embedded  in  the 
bank. 

After  passing  over  the  tertiary  system,  which  continues,  in 
the  direction  to  Raleigh,  about  twenty-five  miles  above  Nash- 
ville, I  discovered  the  primary  slates,  talcose  and  micaceous, 
with  a  great  many  quartz  veins  running  through  them,  show- 
ing strong  indications  of  gold.  The  dip  of  these  slates  is  to 
the  South,  70  degrees  East,  at  an  angle  varying  from  25  de- 
grees 10  60  degrees  ;  the  strike  South,  20  degrees  West. 
After  passing  over  this  formation,  I  came  to  a  formation  of  in- 
ferior granite,  composed  chiefly  of  feldspar  and  quartz,  with 
a  very  small  proportion  of  mica.  This  stone  readily  dis- 
integrates when  exposed  to  the  frost,  producing  a  coaise  gra- 
velly soil,  which  is  an  excellent  land  for  corn,  cotton  and  oats. 
This  granite  gradually  increases  until  it  reaches  Raleigh, 
where  it  has  a  sufficient  amount  of  mica  to  form  a  very  good 
building  stone.  At  Raleigh,  the  dip  of  the  slate  is  changed 
fron  S  -uheast  to  Northwest,  at  angles  varying  from  25  de- 
gree to  SO  degrees  ;  in  fact,  the  dip  near  the  Plumbago  veins, 
four  or  '-ve  miles  Northwest  of  Raleigh,  is  nearly  perpendicu- 
lar. The  strike  being  South,  20  degrees  West.  I  have  pro- 
cured :.,)  cimens  of  this  graphite  for  your  inspection,  from 
seve  ••:  points:  some  ol  it  is  of  good  quality,  but  the  most 


173 


of  it  that  I  saw  was  out  crop,  and,  therefore,  was  full  of 
dirt.  I  think  these  veins  of  graphite,  by  proper  manage- 
ment, might  be  made  immensely  valuable.  I  should  expect 
to  find  the  mineral  of  much  better  quality,  after  going 
down  to  water  scale.  The  stratum  of  Plumbago  is  of  good 
«i?<?  ^w-all  appearances,  but  I  was  not  able  to  measure  it 
•acy,  in  consequence  of  the  pits  being  filled  with 

Johnson  Busbee's,  ten  miles  Southeast  of 
there  are  strong  indications  of  marl.  I  found 
jilicious  shelly  limestone,  scattered  over  a  large 
same  which  we  have  usually  found  between 
nd  and  shell  marl.  I  have  a  piece  for  your  ex- 
This  point,  I  think,  should  be  particnlarl  .  ex- 
Vlarl,as  far  up  the  country  as  this,  would  be  very 
v%\M*.y^t*i«consequence  of  the  scarcity  of  lime  in  that  sec- 
H  ew  («K  S  ta  te  . 

lignite  in  the  Cape  Fear  River,  about  eighteen 
3  Fayetteville,  on  Silver  Run  creek,  and  the 
vft  vvhich  it  is  embedded,  resembles  that  at  Eliza- 
we  found  between  the  two  beds  of  marl.  At 
\v*';  »3  also  found  petrified  wood.  I  think  ynu  would 
find  this  neighborhood  an  interesting  one  for  examination, 
and  the  citizens  are  exceedingly  anxious  you  should  visit 
them,  for  that  purpose. 

I  have  samples  of  iron  ore  procured  at  various  points  in 
Cumberland  county,  which  is  all  verysilicious  ;  probably  too 
much  so,  to  be  of  much  value. 

The  above,  I  believe,  constitutes   all  the   information   I 
have  been  able  to  procure  during  your  absence.     You  will 
please  examine  the  contents,  make  corrections  of  any  mis- 
take, and  use  it  as  you  may  think  most  advisable. 
I  remain  your  obedient  servant, 

S.  McLENAHAN. 
Professor  EMMONS, 

State  Geologist,  N.  C. 


fty*    * 


APPENDIX. 


I  have  been  obliged  to  refer  to  the  different  syste 
rocks,  in  the  foregoing  report.  I  am  induced,  theref 
furnish  a  tabular  view  of  those  systems,  that  the  reader 
be  able,  at  a  glance,  to  see  the  relations  in  which  they  £ 
to  each  other.  I  make  three  principal  classes  of  rocks,  w'- 
hold  an  equal  rank.  These  three  classes  are  subdivi  •  *v 
These  subdivisions  are  based  upon  facts  and 
which  are  peculiar  to  each,  and  on  characters  which  are  . 
common  to  each  division.  The  names  of  the  principal 
are  new,  and  are  simply  expressive  of  facts,  upon  which  all 
geologists  are  agreed. 

The  three  classes  : 

I.  Pyrocrystalline — crystallized  by  the  agency  of 

fire.     Primary  of  authors. 
II.  Pyroplastic — moulded  by  fire.     Ancient  and 

modern  volcanic  rock  of  authors. 
III.  Hydroplastic — moulded  by  water.    Sediments 
of  authors. 

The  first  class  is  divided  into  two  sections  : 

1.  Unstratified  pyrocrystalline,  as  granite,  Hyper- 

thene   rock,   pyrocrystalline   limestone,   sie 
nite,  magnetic  iron  ores. 

2.  Stratified   pyrocrystalhne  gneiss,  mica   slate, 

talcose  slate  and  hornblende  steatite. 

The  second  class  is  divided  in  two  sections,  also : 


175 


1.  Modern  pyroplastic  rocks,  lavas,  luffs,  pumice 

and  all  the  products  of  volcanoes,  which  are 
cooled  in  the  air. 

2.  Ancient  pyroplastic    rocks,  the  ancient  lavas, 

cooled   under   water,  basalt,  porphyry  and 
green  stone. 

•*- 
^^HlvCMass  is  divide!  into  systems,  most  of  which  are 

^Hl  Vv  geologists  of  the  day. 

^^H^as  belonging  to  the  class  of  hydroplastic  rocks, 
&*S|0'U4uOed  and  loovse  sediments,  aie  exhibited  in  the  fol- 


\   Tertiary  system  : 

1.  Postpliocene. 

2.  Pliocene. 

3.  Miocene. 

4.  Eocene. 

Z/-  .  Cretaceous  system  : 

1.  Upper  cretaceous,  including  the  true 

chalk,  with  flints. 

2.  Lower    cretaceous,    including    the 

green  s  ind,  iron  sands,  &c. 

III.  Wealden,  unknown  in  the  U.  S. 

IV.  Oolite  and  Lias. 

V.  New  red  Sandstone  or  Trias  : 

1.  Upper. 

2.  Middle. 

3.  Lower. 

VI.  Permian  system  . 
VII.   Carboniferous  system  . 
VIII.  Devonian  system. 
IX.   Silurian  system  : 

1.  Upper. 

2.  Lower. 

X.    Taconie  system. 


176 


The  tenth  is  the  oldest  of  the  sediments,  and  is  more  close- 
ly allied  to  the  primary  or  pyrocrystalline  slates,  limes,  ores, 
etc.  Any  of  the  foregoing  systems  may  rest  on  the  primary, 
and  any  of  the  foregoing  may  be  traversed  by  the  unstnitified 
pyrocrystalline  rocks  ;  particularly  granite,  which  is  then  said 
to  be  of  the  age  of  the  deposit  in  which  it  is  found.  As  any 
of  the  foregoing  systems  may  rest  upon  the  primary,  so  either 
may  form  the  surface  rocks  over  large  areas. 


GLOSSARY 


-XTIF1C  TERMS  USED  IX  THIS  REPORT. 


Amorphous — shapeless,  destitute  of  a  regular  form. 
Arenaceous — sandy,  composed  of  sand. 
Argillaceous — composed  of  clay. 

Basalt — a  rock  mostly  homogeneous,  of  an  igneous  origin, 

and  cooled  under  water. 

Basin — a  depression  in  the  strata,  of  a  circular  form. 
Belemnite — a  fossil  of  acylindrical   form,  tapering  rapidly 

to  a  point,  and  at  one  end  or  the  other  it  has  a  conical 

cavity:  it  is  the  back-bone  of  an  extinct  animal,  allied 

to  the  cuttle  fish. 

Bitumen — a  combustible  substance,  combined  with  coal. 
Breccia — a  compound  rock,  consistingof  angular  fragments. 

Calcareous — bearing  or  containing  lirne. 
Calcedony — a  compact  variety  of  quartz,  of  a  milky  white- 
ness. 
Carbon — the  element  of  charcoal. 


ITS 


Carbonate  of  Lime — a   compound  of  carbonic   acid  and 

lime. 
Carboniferous — coal  bearing :  a  term  applied  to  a  syftem 

of  rocks  which  bear  coal. 
Cetacea — an  order  of  animals,  of  which  the    whale  is  the 

type. 

Chert — a  variety  of  amorphous  quartz,  much  like  flint. 
Concretion — a  union  of  particles,  forming  rounded  and' 

bodies. 
Conformable — a  term  applied  to  strata,  which  lie  pa$  cdlel 

with  each  other. 
Conglomerate — A    rock    composed  of    rounded   jfHtVvSLS^ 

formed  under  water. 
Coniferse — trees  which  bear  cones,  with   naked  sei^.^  Q^ 

pines  and  the  fir. 
Cretaceous — belonging  to  chalk  :  the  name  of  the  dystew\ 

to  which  common  chalk  belongs. 
Crustacea — an  order  of  animals  which  are   provided  with 

a  crust  or  external  integument  similar  to  the  lobster 

and  crab. 

Dikes,  or  Dykes — a  vein    of  rock   or  stony  matter,  which 

has  been  injected  into  a  fissure,  while  in  a  melted 

state. 
Diluvium — a  term  which  was  applied  to  a  stratum,  which 

was  supposed  to  have  been  spread  over  the  earth  by 

the  deluge. 
Dip — strata,  when  inclined  to  the  horizon,  are  said  to  dip. 

Eocene — dawn  of  the  present :  a  term  applied  to  the  old- 
est of  the  tertiary  deposits. 

Escarpment — the  steep  side  of  a  hill. 

Estuary — the  mouth  of  a  river,  which  is  occupied,  in  part 
by  fresh,  in  part  by  salt,  water,  or  by  brackish  water. 

Faults — the  dislocation  of  strata,  by  which  one  side  is  ele- 
vated above  the  other. 


179 


Fauna—  the  aggregate  of  the  animals  which  inhabit  csr- 

tain  districts. 
Formation  —  a  series  or   group  of  rocks,  which  belong  to 

one  period. 

Fossils  —  the  remains  of  animals  and  plants  entombed  in 
rocks. 


rock  or  mineral,  composed  of  oil  of  vitriol  and 
l»i. 

•Y\£  •        ' 

u  Cb  VI  &scensu—  minerals  or  rocks,  in  a  state  of  fusion. 


Hftd  —  a  mineral  or  rock,  composed  of  thin  plates. 
*  ';4|^<xS-iuPPosed  to  be  derived  frern  layers:  a  system  be- 

Vw^sn  the  oolite  and  new  red  sandstone. 
£f  5iv^C-—  wood  caibonizec!  or  changed  partly  into  coal. 
\*tW/)  logical  —  denotes  the  stony  characters  of  a  mass. 


—belonging  to  the  shore. 


k\*«.a  mixture  of  sand,  clay  and  vegetable  matter. 
"Lvta  *  o  ^tes  —  ft  fossil  plant,  allied  to  club  masses  or  ground 


Mammalia  —  animals    which    furnish  glands    for  the   se- 

cretion of  milk. 
Mammoth  —  an  extinct  thick-skinned  animal,  allied  to  the 

elephant. 

Marl  —  a  mixture  of  lime  and  clay. 
Mastodon  —  see  mammoth. 

Miocene  —  the  middle  deposits  belonging  to  the  tertiary., 
Molusca—  an  order  of  animals  generally  covered  with  shells* 

as  the  oyster  and  clam. 

Nodule  —  a  rounded  mass. 

Out  crop  —  the  appearance  of  the  edges  of  rocks  at  (he  sur- 
face. 


ISO 


Oxygen  —  -a.  gaseous  body,  which  is  essential  :  it  changes 
the  blood  from  a  black  to  a  scarlet  color,  in  respiration; 
combines,  with  metals,  and  forms  a  class  of  bodies  call, 
ed  oxides,  etc. 

Pachydermata  —  an  order  of  animals   with  thick  skins,  as 

the  elephant,  hog,  tapir,  horse,  camel. 
Palaeontology  —  the  science  which  treats  o^f  extinct  animals 

and  plants. 
Porphyry  —  an  igneous   rock,   cooled    beneath  water,  -  0mA- 

which  contains  irregular  pieces  ot  feldspar. 
Pyrites  —  sulphur  and  iron  in  combination. 


Rodentia  —  an  order  of  snimals,  supplied  with  front 
teeth,  similar  to  the  squirrel  and  rabbit;  gnawer  as 
rat. 

Ruminants,  Ruminantia  —  an  order  of  animals  which  ch 
the  cud,  as  cow,  sheep,  deer. 

Saurian  —  a  lizard-like  animal. 

Schist  —  a  rock  made  of  three  parallel  layers. 

Sediments,  Sedimentary  —  mud,  sand,  etc.,  deposited  under 

water. 
Septaria  nodules  —  composed  of  clay,  lime,  etc.,  divided  into 

parts  or  partitions  of  crystalline  matter. 
Shale—  indurated  clay. 
Silex  —  silica,  flint. 
Stratified  —  divided  into  layers. 

Strike  —  the  line  of  the  bearing  of  rocks  which  lies  at  a  right 
,  angle  to  their  dip.     The  ridge-pole  of  a  house  shows 

the  strike:  the  inclination  of  the  roof,  the  dip;  and  it 

forms,  in  this  illustration,  an  anticlynal  axis. 
Syenite  —  a  variety  of  granite,  in  which  hornblende   takes 

place  of  mica. 
Synclynal  Axis  —  the  reverse  of  anticlynal,  when  the  strata, 

on  two  sides,  plunge  towards  each  other,  or  to  a  line 

below  their  out  crop. 


1S1 
Trap — volcanic  rocks. 

Veins — Fissures  filled  with  mineral  matter,    differing  from 
the  rock  in  which  the  Assure  has  been  found. 

Unconformable  Strata — reposing  upon  the  edges  of  strata 
or  when  the  layers  are  not  parallel  to  each  other. 


ERRATA. 

In  section  30,  instead  of  reading  "  Indian   Corn"  , 
Cotton. 

In  section  27,  instead  of  .$65  per  acre,  read  $15  peir   CLt  V  C  *, 
and  instead  of  "  two  laborers,''  read  "'twelve  laborey  J,° 

In  section  28,  fourth  line  from  the  bottom  of  thft     |?G.Y(X- 
graph,  for  manures  read  measures.     In  same  section,^  VV 
line  from  the  bottom  oi  the  paragraph,  for  prepared  ^  V 
purchased. 

[The  PUBLIC  PRINTER  thi-nks  it  probable  that  some  typ6^ 
graphical  inaccuracies  occur  in  the  foregoing  re;><  rt. 
The  unavoidable  absence  of  the  author,  in  the  prosecution 
of  his  labors,  devolved  upon  the  publisher  the  duty  of  re- 
vising the  proof-sheets.  His  want  of  familiarity  \\ith  most 
of  the  technical  terms  employed,  renders  it  probable  that 
errors  exist,  so  for  as  those  terms  are  concerned.] 


14  DAY  USE 

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